


Puppy Love

by Emilia_Rowan



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: 101 Dalmatians AU, Disney but gay, F/F, Lesbian Lena Luthor, Lillian is a bitch, Pansexual Kara Danvers, Rating might change to T for cursing and heavy petting in later chapters, and your psychopathic family members, homophobic family members, literal fluff, puppy au, spay and neuter your pets
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-07
Updated: 2020-04-08
Packaged: 2021-02-27 09:40:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 25,779
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22154917
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emilia_Rowan/pseuds/Emilia_Rowan
Summary: When Kara finds a puppy in an abandoned Cadmus facility, she has no idea that Krypto will later lead her to the love of her life.When Lena inherits Lex’s sporting dogs, she decides to keep one adorable ball of fluff. Little does she know Keeva will lead her to love and happiness.When Krypto meets Keeva and Kara meets Lena, sparks fly between canines and owners. But when you’re a Super and a Luthor, and one of your dogs is a genetically-altered super canine, there’s always trouble around the corner.
Relationships: Alex Danvers/Maggie Sawyer, Clark Kent/Lois Lane, Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor
Comments: 147
Kudos: 845





	1. Prologue and Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This was entirely inspired my ridiculous love for my own dogs and a random post on tumblr (honestly, most of my stories are inspired by random tumblr posts). I’m seriously debating taking a bunch of Disney movies and making them Supercorp, just for kicks and giggles.

Prologue

“Alex, this place looks pretty much abandoned,” Kara said into her coms.

“Just be careful, Supergirl,” her sister’s voice rang in her ear. “We don’t know what kind of traps Cadmus might’ve left.”

Kara fought the urge to roll her eyes. They knew a few things about this new anti-alien group that had sprung up recently: it had once been affiliated with the government— with the DEO itself, actually, a fact that Kara couldn’t help but resent— but was sold off to a private bidder, and that bidder had been Lex Luthor, who was now behind bars for killing dozens of humans in his attempt to kill Superman. The organization had been disbanded, though it seemed like someone was still pulling the strings somewhere. Supergirl had been working with the DEO to investigate abandoned Cadmus facilities for the past month, and so far they had found a few stashes of alien weapons, one nonfunctional Tavargan alien ship, and a whole lot of trashed computers and destroyed files. Some underlings at the DEO were working with Winn on restoring the computer drives and Kara knew there were at least two interns taping together strips of shredded documents to try and make sense of whatever Cadmus was doing.

Kara didn’t hold out much hope for this particular facility to give them any evidence. It was little more than a small concrete structure out in the middle of the desert, surrounded by rusty chain link fencing that couldn’t keep a rabbit out, much less a Kryptonian. The thick steel door looked tougher than the walls, and Kara easily broke the locking mechanism and pulled it open.

“This place looks like a prison,” Kara told Alex. The building had a single hallway, lined with concrete pens with chain link doors. “Or maybe an animal shelter.”

“Why the heck would Cadmus need an animal shelter?” Alex asked speculatively.

“Maybe they had some alien animal species,” Kara said, looking in one of the pens. “Although I’m not sure what these cells would actually hold. Even a Pygarian Snarfinagus could break out of one of these, and they’re basically house cats with tentacles.”

“A Snar— You know what, later,” Alex said, and Kara could just imagine her shaking her head. “Do you see anything else?”

Kara used her x-ray vision to look around. “There’s a stairwell leading to a basement, and what looks like a lead-lined vault.”

“Lead-lined?” Alex asked. “Do you need backup?”

“If it’s anything like the rest of this place, I should be fine,” Kara replied. “Stand by.”

“Okay, just be careful,” Alex cautioned.

Kara broke through another steel door to access the stairwell, a narrow flight that lead straight to the locked door of the vault. She was a bit more careful this time, only easing the door open slightly in case there was Kryptonite inside.

“Supergirl, status report,” Alex said through the coms.

“I don’t feel anything, so I’m going in,” Kara replied. She pulled open the door of the vault and stepped inside.

Inside the vault was what looked like a lab. It appeared to have been abandoned quickly— glass from smashed vials littered the floor, along with partially-shredded documents. Three computers sat to one side, and at least those looked intact, although only Winn and the other techies at the DEO could say for sure. Kara stepped further into the vault, glancing at an abandoned file folder on one of the tables.

“Superdog?” she read aloud, forehead crinkling in confusion.

“What was that?” Alex asked.

“Nothing,” Kara replied. She came closer to a shelf on the opposite side of the room, each level lined with what looked like glass jars. Inside were the preserved remains of what looked like puppies and fetal puppies at various levels of development. “Gross.”

“Supergirl, what’s in vault?” Alex asked.

“It looks like some kind of experiment with dogs,” Kara told her. “They’ve got some preserved specimens here, but… Hang on.”

There was another steel door behind the shelf, hidden by the preserved specimens. Kara was careful not to damage any of the jars as she moved the shelf out of the way, then she opened the door.

A sudden wave of nausea swept over her and she fell to the floor. Inside the small room the walls glowed green.

“Alex, there’s Kryptonite,” Kara ground out as her body burned.

“Shit!” Alex shouted. “All units to Supergirl’s location, now! Supergirl, do you read me?”

“Copy,” Kara said. “I can’t… Alex, there’s something in the vault.”

“What is it? Supergirl? Kara? Kara!”

——

“Hey, look who’s back in the land of the living.”

Kara blinked rapidly as she came to. She recognized the DEO infirmary around her for all of five seconds before Alex was shining a bright light in her eyes.

“Ow, geez, Alex, I’m fine, I didn’t hit my head,” she insisted.

“Yeah, well, you still need to stay under the sun lamps for a bit to counteract the effects of the Kryptonite,” Alex told her. “You’re never going into a room you can’t x-ray vision without backup again, do you hear me?”

“Mmhmm,” Kara muttered. Suddenly a memory came back to her. “Wait, did you get it out?”

“Now she remembers,” Alex said. “Actually, _he_ got _you_ out. He’s over here.”

Kara looked over to where Alex was gesturing. On the next gurney over, also beneath a sun lamp, was a sleeping puppy. He was solid white, with big pointed ears and long legs and paws that looked too big for his body.

“We ran some tests, and based on those results and what you found in the vault, it looks like Cadmus was trying to make a super powered canine for military use,” Alex explained. “They used Kryptonian DNA— though exactly how they got their hands on it, I’m not sure— and infused it into canine fetuses. The rest of the specimens didn’t make it, but this one did.”

“So he’s like me?” Kara asked.

“We’re not sure what powers he might have, but it appears he at least had superstrength,” Alex said. “He dragged you out of that vault and away from the Kryptonite.”

Kara stretched her hand over to the other gurney and ran her fingers through the sleeping puppy’s white fur. “Good boy.”

“Yes, he was a good boy,” Alex sighed.

“So… Can I keep him?” Kara asked.

“What?” Alex exclaimed. “No! Kara! He’s a Cadmus experiment! And he’s a dog with superpowers! He’s obviously strong, since he was able to drag your deadweight out of that vault. Your apartment can barely survive your super strength, much less a dog with the same power. And who knows what else he can do? No, no, the answer is no, absolutely not.”

“But, Alex, he’s like me!” Kara exclaimed. “Who better to take care of him than somebody who has the same powers?”

“He’ll stay here in the DEO where he can’t hurt anyone,” Alex said.

“He won’t hurt anyone! He’s a good boy!” Kara argued. “He’s not a prisoner, Alex.”

“He’s a dog, Kara!” Alex argued.

Their arguing apparently woke the dog in question. He rolled over on the gurney and stared at them with piercing blue eyes that looked far too intelligent to be entirely canine. After a moment he hopped from his gurney to Kara’s and curled up against her chest with a sigh.

“See, he likes me, Alex!” Kara said, ruffling the puppy’s ears. “Don’t you, Krypto? Yes, you’re such a good boy, Krypto.”

“Did you just… Kara, you can’t name him Krypto!”

——

Lena was tired. She was tired of paperwork and lawyers and FBI agents and… She really just wanted to take a nap, but that wasn’t an option at the moment. Instead she propped her chin on her hand and tried to make sense of the lists in front of her.

“We’re almost finished, Miss Luthor,” her lawyer, Mr. Turing, an older fellow with stooped shoulders and a kind smile assured her.

“Yes, we just need to go over this last page of Mr. Luthor’s assets, and then you and your assistant will be free to go,” Agent Hawkins, a broad man with an equally broad mustache told her.

Lena glanced at Jess, her newly-hired administrative assistant. She looked as tired as Lena felt, but her spine was stiff with resolve. Lena sighed— at least she had made a good choice when she decided to hire someone outside of the LuthorCorp employee pool.

“It looks like most of these items were affiliated with Mr. Luthor’s personal interests,” Jess said, passing over the list. “There are several yachts, vacation properties, sports cars, things like that.”

“The properties will all need to be searched, you understand,” Agent Hawkins interjected.

“Yes, I understand,” Lena agreed. She scanned the page with tired eyes. “Mr. Turing, once the properties have been thoroughly searched, I would like to have agents appraise them for sale, the proceeds from which should go toward the restitution funds for victims of my brother’s crimes.”

“Yes, Miss Luthor,” the lawyer replied, taking note.

Lena looked over the list again, brow furrowing. “What’s this line? _Luthor Sport Kennels_?”

“That would be Mr. Luthor’s dogs.”

Lena looked across the table at the handcuffed woman who answered. Eve Teschmacher had been her brother’s personal assistant before he went mad and tried to kill Superman and murdered dozens of people in the process. She had been arrested as an accomplice, but was with them to help go through her brother’s assets as part of her plea deal.

“What dogs?” Lena asked, her voice steely.

“Well, Mr. Luthor engaged in many different dog sports,” Eve explained. “Hunting and retrieving, mainly, but he also had dogs trained for personal protection. The kennel is here, on the property, if you’re interested.”

That’s how, twenty minutes later, wrapped in her warmest wool coat, Lena ended up behind the Luthor mansion in a small brick building with black fencing and several barking dogs braying at her.

“How did I not know this was here?” she asked, but the question was entirely rhetorical. She had avoided the mansion for the past six years, so it wasn’t actually surprising that she didn’t know her brother had a collection of sporting dogs.

Lena opened the doors to the main building and entered an impeccably clean office. The walls were lined with ribbons and shelves of trophies from various competitions Lex had entered the dogs in. A large photo of Lex holding a rifle and leashes to two labradors while standing over a line of dead mallards took up most of the opposite wall.

“Seems he was quite successful,” Lena murmured as Jess and the others filed in behind her.

“If only he’d stuck to hunting ducks instead of hunting aliens,” Agent Hawkins said.

Lena snorted. “Yes, if only.”

“Ah, Miss Luthor! I wondered when you’d be showin’ up out ‘ere!”

They all turned in surprise as a tall blond man stepped into the room from a dim hallway. Agent Hawkins had a hand on his holstered weapon.

“Ah, don’t shoot!” the man exclaimed, his British accent thick. “John Corben’s the name. I worked for Mr. Luthor, training and taking care of the dogs. Just doin’ my job.”

Agent Hawkins relaxed. From behind him, Eve Teschmacher spoke up.

“Miss Luthor would like to see the dogs, John.”

“Ah, Miss Teschmacher,” the man said with a wink and a glance at the handcuffs around her wrists. “Always knew you’d run into no good.”

The blonde just smiled flirtatiously at the jab. Lena rolled her eyes.

“The dogs, if you will, Mr. Corben,” she said, pulling his attention back.

“Of course, Miss Luthor, right this way,” he said, gesturing for them to follow him through the hallway.

The kennel was home to twenty dogs— bloodhounds, labradors, pointers, foxhounds, dobermans, and several breeds of shepherd. They were in excellent condition, well fed and groomed, their kennels spotless.

“As you might guess, Mr. Corben, I’m not as interested in dog sports as my brother, nor do I have the time,” Lena told the kennel master. “Could you assist Mr. Turing in finding new owners for these animals? I trust you to fetch a fair price for their training and pedigrees, and of course a portion of the sales will go to you as a severance fee.”

“Of course, Miss Luthor,” the man agreed.

“Good, that’ll be…” Lena’s voice trailed off as whining interrupted her train of thought. Her eyes scanned the kennels, falling on a small white ball of fluff in the final pen. “Oh. What’s that?”

Her heels clicked against the floor as she walked down to the pen. Pressed against the bars was a fluffy white puppy with pointed ears and sad brown eyes. It looked up at Lena with a baleful expression and whimpered.

“That would be the newest addition, just arrived all the way from Europe,” Corben explained. “She’s a _Berger Blanc Suisse_ that one, a White Swiss Shepherd. Mr. Luthor wanted her trained up for schutzhund, but personally I think she might be a bit too soft for that.”

Lena knelt down by the kennel and reached through the bars to stroke the puppy’s head. “Well… You’re just lovely, aren’t you. I’m sure Mr. Corben will find you a nice home.”

The puppy whined and leaned into Lena’s hand. Lena stared at her brown eyes, heart torn. She really had no time or space for a puppy right now. It wasn’t rational. This dog should go to a home with a family and a big backyard and…

She whimpered again and licked the back of Lena’s hand.

“Open the pen, Mr. Corben,” she said, before she could rethink her decision. “This one’s coming with me.”

“Yes, Miss Luthor, right away,” the man agreed, fumbling with his keychain until he found the correct key. He unlocked the door and the puppy shook herself before standing at Lena’s feet and looking up at her with expectant, affectionate eyes.

“Well, seems you’ve got yourself a new little buddy,” Mr. Turing chuckled.

Lena scooped up the puppy, not caring that she was a bit too big to be cuddled or that white fur was getting all over the front of her coat. “Jess, we’ll need to stop by a pet store on our way back to the hotel. Find me a list of puppy essentials, please.”

“Yes, Miss Luthor,” Jess replied and she began typing rapidly into her phone.

“Cutie,” Agent Hawkins said, reaching up to ruffle the puppy’s white fur. “She’ll need a name.”

Lena looked down at the pup, who now had her head snuggled against Lena’s shoulder.

“I think I’ll call her Keeva.”

Chapter One

*Two Years Later*

Lena stared out the window of her office at the National City skyline. She had only been in the city for a little over a week, and already she could feel a satisfying warmth radiating in her chest every time she took in the view. For two years she had worked to revamp LuthorCorp into a force for good, cutting weapons and anti-alien projects, firing board members that shared Lex’s xenophobic ideology, and beginning clean energy initiatives and medical research. Changing the name of LuthorCorp to L-Corp and relocating the company’s headquarters had been her final stroke in separating herself and her company from her brother’s legacy. It had been two years of exhausting, sometimes soul-crushing work, but finally, _finally_ she felt like it was beginning to pay off.

A soft huff followed by a series of thumps interrupted Lena’s thoughts, and she looked down to the floor beside her. Keeva was stretched out on the plush dog bed Lena had purchased for her, one paw draped over an elk-antler chew, the other beneath her head. She looked up at Lena with deep brown eyes and her tail resumed its wagging, thumping against the side of Lena’s desk.

Keeva had proven to be Lena’s saving grace over the past two years. Training and caring for the dog as she grew from a fluffy puppy to an elegant dog had been the only break Lena allowed herself from work. She took her to obedience classes herself and spent hours training at home until Keeva received her Canine Good Citizen award. She made sure to be home in time to feed the dog, or, once she was completely potty trained, brought her to work. Jess would sometimes take Keeva for breaks out of the office, but Lena made sure she was the one who took her on her daily morning and evening walks— partially as a way to keep herself active and exercising. Lena had even implemented pet-friendly policies in the L-Corp office, allowing employees to bring their well-behaved dogs to work regularly, and it had boosted morale significantly.

“What do you think, sweet girl?” Lena asked, and at her words Keeva sat up from her bed and rested her head in Lena’s lap. Keeva couldn’t voice her opinion, but Lena thought, other than the inconvenience of currently living out of a hotel room, the shepherd was taking the transition in stride. Lena ran her fingers through plush white fur, ignoring how some stray strands ended up on her black pencil skirt. “I think lunch in the park would be a good idea, don’t you girl?”

Keeva’s tail wagged furiously, recognizing the word “park” instantly. Lena chuckled at her obvious enthusiasm.

“Okay, get your leash for me,” she said. Keeva trotted across the office to the hook near the door where Lena kept her leash and carried the red cord back across the office where she placed it into Lena’s hand. Lena fastened the clip to Keeva’s collar and grabbed her purse on her way out.

“Going out, Miss Luthor?” Jess asked as they passed. Keeva made her way behind the assistant’s desk where she received an ear scratch and a small cookie.

“I think we’ll head to the park for lunch today,” Lena told her. “Any suggestions?”

“There’s a market on the corner that has excellent soup, salad, and sandwich combos,” Jess told her. “And the ice cream cart near the pond has special doggy gelato that Keeva just loves.”

“Really?” Lena asked. She looked down at the dog. “We’re going to have to start watching your diet, girl.”

“We only indulge on rare occasions when she’s being a particularly good girl,” Jess said with a wink.

“Which is all the time,” Lena laughed. “Be back in an hour, Jess.”

National City Central Park was only two blocks away from the L-Corp office, but so far Lena had only visited it briefly for Keeva’s morning walks. It was a lovely place, with large grassy fields and intermittent groves of shade trees and flower patches. In the center of the park was a large pond, and that was where Lena headed with Keeva, after picking up a salad and half-sandwich from the market Jess suggested. She spread her jacket on the grass beneath the trees and sat, Keeva sitting in front of her and watching intently as she ate.

“You don’t need this,” Lena told the dog before offering a bit of her bread crust. Keeva took the bite with a gentle mouth and a satisfied tail wag. Lena finished her lunch, feeding more crust to Keeva as she went, then dug around in her purse. She pulled out a well-worn novel in one hand and a tennis ball in the other. She looked at Keeva. “What do you think, girl? Reading or fetch?”

Keeva barked and jumped up excitedly, tail wagging furiously as her eyes fixated on the ball. Lena laughed at her enthusiasm and tucked the novel back into her bag.

“Fetch it is then,” she said, standing up. She pulled her arm back to toss the ball, only to be distracted by the sight in front of her. “Good lord, what’s that?”

——

Kara glanced up at the clock above her desk for the fifth time in as many minutes. Her stomach growled so loudly that she was sure everyone in the bullpen could hear it, even over the sound of their typing.

“Skip breakfast this morning, Ponytail?” Snapper asked nasally.

“Yep,” Kara replied honestly. She didn’t add that the only reason she skipped breakfast was because she dropped her donuts into the river while she was pushing a wrecked car back onto the bridge.

Snapper looked up at the clock. “Well, your stomach is messing with my concentration. Get out of here and grab yourself lunch.”

Kara didn’t have to be told twice. She almost broke her desk as she pushed her chair away. “Thank you, sir!”

“Mmhmm,” Snapper said, already back to typing.

It wasn’t that Kara didn’t love being a reporter— she really, truly did enjoy chasing down leads and making sure the public knew the truth of what was going on in the world— but she also loved food. And she really loved her lunch break because everyday on her lunch break, after scarfing down a monumental amount of food, she took Krypto to the park.

She flew by Big Belly Burger on her way home and grabbed her usual— two double cheeseburgers and a large fry for herself, and one cheeseburger with no condiments for Krypto. As soon as she landed on the balcony she could hear excited barking from inside her apartment, and when she entered she had to hold the takeout bag over her head out of reach from the dog bouncing around her.

“Easy, buddy, you’ll get yours in a minute,” she laughed. Krypto just stopped jumping and barked at her. “Okay, shush, you’re gonna get me in trouble.”

“Danvers!” her neighbor shouted, beating against the wall. “Shut that animal up or I’m calling the super!”

“Sorry!” Kara shouted back through the paper-thin walls. She looked down at Krypto. “See, now you’ve done it.”

The dog just whined and laid down, looking up with pleading eyes. Kara sat at the counter and unwrapped their food, breaking Krypto’s burger into smaller bites that she could toss to him while she ate hers.

“Here, you glutton,” she said, tossing him the first bite, which he practically inhaled. “Is this what other people feel like when they watch me eat?”

Krypto had grown into a handsome dog in two years since she found him in the Cadmus lab. He had stayed at the DEO for another month until they could test the extent of his Kryptonian powers, which were the same as Kara and her cousin’s. He also seemed to have increased intelligence compared to other dogs, recognizing more words and even understanding complete sentences. Only after Alex designed a power-dampening device that attached to his collar had Kara been allowed to take the gawky five-month-old puppy home with her. He was really a well-behaved dog, just easily excited when food was involved, and really Kara couldn’t fault him for that. Kara loved having the dog to come home to everyday after working at CatCo and with the DEO as Supergirl. It was especially helpful when Alex met her girlfriend, Maggie, and had less time to spend with her sister. Kara wasn’t sure what she would’ve done during that transition without Krypto to cheer her up and give her limitless cuddles.

Kara finished her second burger and tossed Krypto the last bite of his. “Alright, you ready to go to the park?”

Krypto let out another loud bark and ran to the door, nosing at where his leash was hanging nearby. Kara just laughed at his antic and tossed her bag into the trash can, running from the apartment before her neighbor could start beating the wall again.

The park was only a few blocks away from her apartment, and it was one of Kara’s favorite places in all of National City. She loved the wide open fields— perfect for a game of fetch— and the shade trees— perfect for a nap— and the food trucks that came every Saturday. She loved feeding the ducks at the pond, and Krypto liked barking at them. She loved watching children play on the playground, and Krypto absolutely loved it when kids asked to pet him. Her favorite place to visit during lunchtime, however, was the ice cream cart that was always parked near the pond at lunchtime. She would get at least three scoops of different flavors— and the flavors varied everyday so she never got the same combo twice— and they even had special doggy gelato that Krypto could eat as well.

Krypto had the route to the pond memorized, and he always trotted alongside her patiently until the ice cream cart came into sight. Then, like clockwork, he whined softly and began pulling on the leash, no matter how much Kara tried to train him not to. Thankfully, because of the power dampener, he wasn’t able to pull Kara off her feet, but she knew if she was a regular human and he was a regular dog, he would probably pull her along to the cart easily.

Today was no different. They stopped twice on their way to the cart, once for Krypto to relieve himself on an oak tree, and once for him to give a gleeful toddler a very slobbery kiss. Kara laughed and rubbed his head affectionately as the toddler walked away giggling, and Krypto’s tongue lolled out of the side of his mouth in a doggy smirk. When they came to the top of the hill above the pond, Kara tightened her grip on the leash, preparing for what came next.

Or so she thought.

Krypto froze beside her, but his gaze wasn’t on the ice cream cart. Instead his blue eyes locked onto a point just across the pond. This intent gaze was usually reserved only for squirrels and other such furry creatures, so Kara followed his line of sight and drew a sharp gasp at what she saw.

He was staring at a woman. Well, no, Krypto was probably staring at her dog, a beautiful white long-haired shepherd. But the dog was playing fetch with a woman, and she had to be the most gorgeous woman Kara had ever seen. She was dressed in a black pencil skirt and a red blouse, and her dark hair was straight and loose, waving slightly in the breeze as she tossed a tennis ball for her dog. Her feet were bare, but Kara could see an abandoned pair of heels nearby, along with a blazer and purse.

Beside her, Krypto whined.

“Yeah,” Kara breathed in agreement. “Gosh, she’s pretty.”

Before Kara could gather her wits, Krypto barked and ran to the end of his leash. Kara quickly grabbed the other end, pulling him back.

“Easy, boy, calm down,” she said, but he was having none of it. The big goof continued to jump and pull and bark, garnering the attention of many of those around them. “Krypto, stop!”

Suddenly the leash jerked with an impossible amount of strength, reverberating up Kara’s arm. Her eyes widened momentarily before Krypto gave another lunge and Kara was pulled off her feet and into the grass.

She wasn’t sure how, but the power dampener had stopped working.

“Krypto!” she shouted, trying to regain her footing as he pulled her further down the hill. “Krypto, stop!”

Krypto did not stop. He ran full speed straight toward the woman and her dog on the other side of the pond. The only problem was, he wasn’t dodging the edge of the pond.

“Ack!” Kara cried as she tumbled into the shallow, muddy water of the pond. “Krypto!”

But the dog paid her no mind. Now covered in mud, he continued out of the other side of the pond. Kara managed to get her footing, running along dripping and muddy behind him, but she couldn’t get him to stop, at least not without using her powers and outing herself. He sped up the hill, barking gleefully, until finally Kara had almost caught up with him.

“I gotcha you— OOF!” she exclaimed as Krypto laid down and she went flying over him and into the grass.

Kara was never more grateful for her invulnerability than that moment— and she had been shot at before. She was fairly certain a normal human would have broken bones and a head injury in the same situation, but her pride was currently hurt much worse than her body.

“Are you alright?”

Kara blinked up at the figure above her. From this angle, the beautiful woman looked like an angel, sunlight streaming down around her shoulders. She was even more beautiful up close, Kara decided, with her pale skin and red lips and a jaw that could cut glass. Suddenly Kara’s view of her face was interrupted by her hand.

“How many fingers am I holding up?” the woman asked.

“Three,” Kara replied.

“Oh, good, you can talk,” she said with a smile. “Do you think you can move?”

“Yeah,” Kara told her, sitting up slowly, as she imagined someone who was injured might. The move brought her even closer to the beautiful woman and suddenly she was dumbstruck by the pale green of her eyes. “Uh… Hi.”

“Hi,” the brunette replied back. “So, your dog, um…”

“Yeah, he’s not normally like this,” Kara said, blushing. “Guess he just wanted to make a new friend.”

“I’m not sure Keeva feels the same,” the woman said, gesturing behind her.

Kara looked past her to see Krypto, half-covered in muddy water, bouncing around and bowing playfully to the other white dog. The other shepherd just sat still and stared at Krypto, finally pawing at him as if to say “Stop that, you’re embarrassing me.”

Kara chuckled. “I think he loses his mind a bit around pretty girls.”

“I suppose so,” the woman said. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, I think so,” Kara said, looking down at herself. “Well, my clothes may not survive, but I think I will.”

A sudden beeping noise pierced the air, and the woman looked down at her watch. “Oh, that’s my alarm. My lunch break is over. But I hate to just leave you here if you’re hurt.”

“I’m fine,” Kara assured her. “I don’t want to be a bother.”

“You’re not a bother, you’re…” the woman’s voice trailed off. She backed away and grabbed her jacket and purse, reaching inside and pulling out a white cloth. “Here, this might help.”

It was a handkerchief, a silk handkerchief with initials monogrammed in silver thread on one corner.

“I didn’t realize people still carried these,” Kara muttered, and the woman chuckled. “I almost feel bad getting it dirty.”

“Don’t worry, I have plenty,” the woman assured her. “They were a rather ostentatious Christmas gift from my mother. Just keep that one, it’s not a big deal.”

“Thank you,” Kara said. She wiped the mud and water from her face as the woman attached the leash to her dog. “Krypto, c’mere you dirty boy!”

“Krypto?” the woman asked. “That’s an unusual name.”

Kara shrugged as she grabbed Krypto’s leash. “He’s… an unusual dog.”

“Yes, well…” the woman said. “I hope to see you around again…”

“Kara,” Kara supplied brightly.

“Kara,” the woman smiled.

Krypto chose that moment to bark and jump toward the other dog, and Kara dove to tackle him so he would stop. He kept wiggling against her until she could get her hands on his collar and press the button on the power dampener, but it gave a faint beep before the yellow light on it died a muddy, watery death.

“Figures,” Kara muttered. “Hey, I didn’t catch your—“ But when she looked up the brunette and her dog were gone. “—name.”

Kara stood and looked down at herself. Her slacks were streaked with green grass stains and her once pale-pink cardigan was now an unrecognizable shade of brown. Krypto trotted to her side and looked up at her, one ear flopping to the side as his tongue lolled lazily out of his mouth.

“Look what you did,” Kara said accusingly. “And you didn’t even give me a chance to get her name.”

Krypto sniffed at the handkerchief in her hand and Kara raised it to her face to inspect it. It was covered in green and brown stains, but the silver embroidery was still easy to make out.

“ _LKL_ ,” Kara muttered. “Hmm… well that’s not particularly helpful.”

Krypto barked. Now that the other dog was gone, his one-track mind had shifted gears and he was staring at the ice cream cart.

“Oh no, you definitely don’t deserve gelato after that little stunt!” Kara told him. “Me, on the other hand, I deserve twice as much ice cream as normal. So I think I’ll get a cone and you get nothing.”

Krypto whined and licked his chops. Kara just glared at him.

“Okay, fine, one scoop of gelato for you, four scoops of ice cream for me, and then we’re going to see Alex about fixing your power dampener,” Kara said. “Deal?”

Krypto just yipped excitedly and pranced toward the cart.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara discovers the identity of LKL

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kara is the cutest pansexual mess, thankfully she has the SuperFriends to help her.
> 
> (This AU contains the characters from S2 of Supergirl, so no Nia or Brainy. Also Mon-El doesn’t exist. And I ship Alex with various characters in my stories, and in this case it’s Sanvers.)
> 
> Also I typed this between midnight and 5am instead of sleeping so if you find any typos or errors... I apologize.

“Come on, Winn, there has to be something we haven’t tried!”

“Alex! Supergirl’s using her super-pout against me again!” Winn shouted across the DEO.

“Children, I swear, you’re both children,” Alex huffed as she emerged from the lab. A loud bark followed her statement and Krypto flew— literally flew— past her and into Kara’s arms.

“Hey, buddy!” Kara exclaimed, pulling the flying dog into a tight embrace. “I miss you!”

“What’s she pouting about now?” Alex asked, looking over Winn’s shoulder.

“Her mystery girl,” Winn replied. “I’ve shown her DMV photos of every woman in National City with the initials LKL—“

“Which I still think isn’t an entirely ethical use of DEO resources,” Alex muttered accusingly.

“Well, it was useless anyway,” Kara huffed. “She must be from out of town.”

“And I was just telling her that I’m not doing a nation-wide search for women with those initials,” Winn continued.

Alex rubbed her temples in frustration. “Seriously, no, no, you cannot do that.”

“See! Told ya!” Winn said, poking Kara’s arm.

Kara pouted, looking over Krypto’s head.

“No, Kara,” Alex said firmly. “Jesus, even I wasn’t this much of a mess when I had a crush on Maggie.”

“You were a totally different kind of mess,” Winn agreed.

“Unnecessary addition, Schott,” Alex said. “Seriously, Kara, what is it about her?”

Kara shrugged. “I just wanna give her back her handkerchief, that’s all. And maybe arrange a playdate for Krypto and her dog. They really liked each other.”

Krypto whined as if in agreement.

“If she was in the park that day, maybe she’ll be in the park again,” Winn suggested.

Kara groaned. “With the articles for the Venture launch and LuthorCorp moving to National City and Cadmus attacking aliens again, I’ve been so busy I haven’t had time to go to the park much this week. Plus, it’s just not the same without Krypto.”

Alex sighed. “Well, good news on that front, I think I’ve about got his power dampener figured out. He should be able to go home later today.”

“Yes!” Kara exclaimed, pumping her fist in the air. She ruffled Krypto’s fur excitedly. “You hear that buddy? You can finally come home!”

“Okay, stop getting dog hair everywhere,” Alex chastised. “Don’t you have somewhere to be? Isn’t there a cat that needs saving from a tree or somebody you need to interview?”

“Well excuse me for wanting to cuddle my puppy,” Kara said, and Krypto huffed in agreement before turning his head to rest it on her shoulder. It was really quite a sight— Supergirl, in her supersuit, easily cradling a hundred-pound dog in her arms like a baby. “Actually, what time is it?”

“One thirty-eight,” Winn supplied helpfully.

“Shoot, I actually do have to go,” Kara said, releasing Krypto from her embrace. The dog floated away from her before dropping to all fours in front of her. “I’m supposed to meet James to cover the LuthorCorp press conference.”

“LuthorCorp, as in _Lex Luthor_?” Winn asked.

“Yeah, apparently now it’s LuthorCorp as in _Lena Luthor_ , his sister,” Kara said.

“Be careful,” Alex warned.

Kara scoffed. “I’ll be fine, Alex. It’s a press conference. What’s the worst that could happen?”

——

Kara stood on her tiptoes in the small crowd, trying to find James. He was easy to spot, towering over the other people gathered in the park in the shadow of the new LuthorCorp headquarters. He was taking photos of the temporary stage and podium, set up in view of the statue of the LuthorCorp logo commemorating the company’s donations to the park’s development and upkeep. Today, however, the statue was covered with a large blue cloth.

“Hey!” Kara called as she approached.

James turned to her with a broad smile. “Hey, yourself. How was your morning?”

“Good,” Kara told him. “I dropped by to see Krypto.”

“And to bug Winn into finding your mystery woman,” James teased.

Kara rolled her eyes. “Not you too.”

James just grinned at her. He had become something like a big brother over the years. Sometimes Kara couldn’t believe she had dated him, however briefly. But he was a good guy, and he had no qualms about her pansexuality. He liked to tease her about her taste in men and women, and she liked teasing him over his online dating profiles.

“You’re cute when you have a crush,” he teased.

“Not much of a crush when I don’t even know her name,” Kara muttered. She looked around, trying to change the subject, and gestured to the covered statue. “What’s up with that?”

“No idea,” James said. “Guess we’ll find out in a minute. You’d better get over there with the other reporters. Meet you after?”

Kara nodded in agreement and headed over to where a crowd of about a dozen reporters had gathered in front of the stage. There weren’t many people there, a fact that didn’t surprise her considering Lex Luthor’s reign of terror a couple of years before, but LuthorCorp was still a scion in the business world, so an event like this drew attention from the press and a few locals. Kara positioned herself near the stage, in clear view of the podium, and pulled out her recording device and a notebook just as the mayor of National City took the stage.

“I’d like to welcome you all to this press conference, hosted by LuthorCorp and its CEO, Miss Lena Luthor,” the man said. “I would like to begin by thanking Miss Luthor and her company for their generous donation toward this park and its upkeep, including a newly-installed safety fence around the park’s pond, and a new dog park in the south end of the park. But that’s not the purpose of today’s conference. Without further ado, I would like to introduce, Miss Lena Luthor.”

The sound of clicking heels drew her attention to the side of the stage, and Kara’s breath caught in her throat. The woman walking to the podium wore an emerald-green blouse and black pencil skirt beneath a tan overcoat. Her dark hair fell in a shiny cascade around her shoulders, contrasting with her pale skin. But it was when she looked over the crowd with piercing pale green eyes that Kara knew for sure.

 _LKL._ The woman from the park was _Lena Luthor_.

“I want to thank you all for coming,” Lena said into the microphone. “My brother hurt a lot of good, innocent people. My family owes a debt, not just to Metropolis, but to everyone, and I intend to pay that.

“Over the past two years, I have restructured my family’s company. We no longer participate in weapons research. Instead our focus has moved to clean energy initiatives and medical research. This company will no longer be the LuthorCorp that everyone knew in the past.”

Kara watched, frozen and transfixed, as the woman spoke. She was poised and eloquent, but Kara could hear how her heart was pounding nervously in her chest. She paused and looked over the crowd, and if she recognized Kara’s face amongst the group of reporters, she didn’t show it.

“By renaming my company L-Corp, we will usher in a new age of cooperation and community,” Lena continued, gesturing to the side of the stage. A worker pulled the curtain from over the statue, revealing a statue of a new logo. Lena smiled and raised her chin proudly. “Together, we will chart a brighter future. Thank you.”

The crowd around her began jostling for attention, shoving their microphones and recording devices into the air and shouting out a chorus of _Miss Luthor! Miss Luthor! Over here! Miss Luthor!_ Lena called on one of the reporters with a microphone.

“Pamela Myers, NCXII news. Miss Luthor, won’t your company lose money they’ve had invested in weapons projects?”

“Admittedly, we did take considerable losses when we cut those projects,” Lena replied. “But we’ve already had significant returns on our investments, including a cleaner jet engine we developed in partnership with Boeing and a new process to produce insulin. I anticipate our returns on these new projects will be equal to if not greater than any returns on past weapons projects.”

“Isaac Lincoln, National City Tribune. Miss Luthor, why did you move your company headquarters to National City?”

Lena sighed. “My brother’s shadow was always going to follow me in Metropolis. National City is quickly becoming a hub for new technology firms like Lord Technologies, medical research firms like Spheerical Industries, and real estate giants like Edge Global. The job market here is thriving and I knew we could find devoted employees to fill every level of position we needed, from researchers to financial advisors. There are people doing good here, and I want to be part of it. Plus,” she grinned broadly, “the weather is definitely preferable to Metropolis.”

There were a few chuckles from the audience. Kara raised her hand and Lena caught her gaze. Kara thought she might’ve seen a hint of recognition cross the other woman’s face before she called on her.

“Kara Danvers, Catco Magazine,” Kara said. “Miss Luthor, what would you say to skeptics who are afraid that you’re just like your brother, just another Luthor?”

Unlike when the other reporters had asked their questions, Lena didn’t shift her gaze to look over the audience, instead leveling Kara with a measuring gaze.

“I wasn’t always a Luthor,” she said, her voice dropping low, as if she wasn’t addressing a crowd of people but speaking to Kara directly. “I was adopted when I was four. The person who made me feel most welcome in the family was Lex. He made me proud to be a Luthor. And then he went on his reign of terror in Metropolis, declared war on Superman, committed unspeakable crimes… When Superman put Lex in jail I vowed to take back my family’s company, to rename it L-Corp, and make it a force for good. I’m just a woman trying to make a name for herself outside of her family. I hope people can understand that.”

Kara nodded, feeling almost chagrined. Around her the reporters began jostling for attention again, but she couldn’t help but stare up at the woman on stage, as if seeing her in a new light.

“Cam Johnson, Daily Gazette. Have you met Supergirl yet, Miss Luthor?”

Lena chuckled and Kara looked up sharply.

“No, I haven’t had the pleasure,” Lena said. “On the one hand, I hope I don’t have to meet her, because that would most likely mean she’s either saving my life or investigating me for a crime. On the other hand… When I moved here, I told a dear friend that if I moved to National City, I could be the Luthor that shares her home with a Kryptonian, that helps her put the world back together instead of tearing it apart. So if I could meet Supergirl, I would tell her that I’m not her enemy. I’m not my brother. I’m here to help, if I can, and I hope that she, like the rest of National City, will just give me a chance.”

The mayor rose again from where he was sitting to the side of the stage, and stepped to the podium beside Lena.

“I think that’s all the time we have allotted for questions today,” he said brightly. “Thank you, Miss Luthor, for all that you’ve done and will do for National City.”

“Thank you for having me,” Lena said brightly.

The mayor began speaking again, but Kara’s eyes followed Lena off the stage. She ducked around reporters quickly, trying to keep an eye on the other woman as she hurried off the stage and away from the crowd.

“Miss Luthor? Miss Luthor!” Kara shouted at her back.

“I’ve answered all the questions I’m going to answer today, thank you,” Lena called back without slowing down, heading toward where a man was holding the door open to a black town car.

“No, wait, Miss Luthor, it’s not about that!” Kara shouted. “I need to return your handkerchief!”

The dark-haired woman stopped short at that, turning around with a raised brow. Then her eyes widened.

“Kara Danvers, right?” she said curiously. “Kara… Oh! Oh, you’re the same Kara!”

Kara caught up with her and smiled brightly. “Yeah, I guess I’m hard to recognize when I’m not dripping in mud.”

Lena chuckled. “Yes, it was a bit distracting. How’s your… Well, everything?”

“It’s fine, I’m fine,” Kara said brightly. She stared at Lena for a long moment, drinking in her piercing eyes and red lips. Then she realized the silence between them was a bit awkward. “Oh, right, your handkerchief.”

“I told you it was nothing, you could keep it,” Lena said as Kara rummaged through her bag.

“It wasn’t nothing, it was very kind of you,” Kara said, pulling the small piece of fabric— freshly washed and free of any mud— out of her bag. “And I wanted the chance to thank you properly. I’ve been hounding my sister who works for the FBI to search for women with your initials, but she refused, of course. I was thinking I would have to stake out the park to find you, but here you are.”

Lena’s eyes widened as she took the handkerchief. “You didn’t know who I was that day in the park? I thought everyone knew my face after my brother’s trial.”

“No,” Kara admitted. “I didn’t really follow Lex’s trial. It… hit a little close to home, to be honest. I have a cousin who lives in Metropolis, he was there for the whole thing.”

“Oh,” Lena said, looking down. “I’m sorry.”

“No, don’t say that, it’s not like it was your fault,” Kara said. “Like you said up there, you’re not your brother.”

“Thank you,” Lena said softly, meeting Kara’s gaze again.

Kara could feel her cheeks turning pink. “Hey, um, I know this might sound weird, but… Would you like to meet up sometime? Maybe a walk in the park, go to the ice cream cart…”

Lena frowned. “Kara… I’m sorry, not to be rude but… I’m not really looking for friends.”

“Right,” Kara said, eyes wide with embarrassment. “Right, well, no, I mean… _We_ don’t have to be friends, necessarily. I was just thinking our dogs really seemed to like each other. I mean, Krypto really liked your dog, and she might like him when he’s not being a total spaz and covered in mud. So I thought, maybe the two of them might like to get together again to play. You know, go for a walk, play some fetch, maybe get some doggy gelato at the ice cream cart. The dogs can be friends, we can just be… acquaintances or whatever.”

Lena bit her lip as she studied Kara, and the motion made butterflies stir in Kara’s stomach.

“ _Or whatever_ ,” Lena muttered, quoting her, mulling over the words.

“Miss Luthor?” her driver called from behind her. She glanced over her shoulder, and the man tapped his watch.

“I’m sorry, but I have to get back to the office,” Lena said, stepping away.

“No, that’s fine,” Kara said, stiffening her jaw in an attempt to hide her disappointment. “I’ll just… Maybe I’ll see you around.”

She stepped away awkwardly, tucking her hands into her pockets. She wasn’t able to stop her shoulders from slumping as she walked away.

“Kara?”

She turned quickly to see Lena standing in the door of the car.

“If nothing comes up at the office, I’m taking Keeva to watch the toy boat races in the park this Saturday,” she said.

Kara perked up immediately. “Yeah?”

“Yeah,” Lena said with a smile. “Maybe I’ll see you around?”

Kara nodded brightly. “Maybe.”

Lena’s smile broadened as she tucked herself into the car and the driver closed the door behind her. Kara’s gaze followed the car as it pulled away, heart thundering in her chest.

“Hey!”

Kara turned quickly as James jogged up behind her.

“Where’d you run off to?” he asked.

Kara just smiled. “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”

——

“This is unbelievable.”

Kara looked up from her potstickers to where Alex was rubbing her temples. After she told James what had happened, he had insisted that she call Alex and they had agreed to meet back at Kara’s apartment that evening. Winn had overheard and invited himself, bringing pizza and beer to make up for intruding, and Alex had brought Maggie as well. So with all five of them crowded around the coffee table, eating enough pizza and Chinese take-out to nourish a small army, and Krypto stretched across the sofa cushions, Kara had recounted the entire story, from the incident in the park the week before, to the press conference today.

“So LKL is Lena Luthor?” Maggie asked.

“Yep,” Kara said, popping the _p_.

Winn was typing something on his phone, then he pulled up a photo. “Yep, Lena Kieran Luthor. She’s still technically registered with the DMV in Metropolis, that’s why she didn’t pop up in my searches.”

“You guys should’ve seen Kara’s face when Lena walked onto the stage,” James said, shaking his head. “I would’ve taken a picture if I wasn’t using my work camera. Classic gay panic.”

“Hey, I’m pan!” Kara exclaimed.

“You can still experience gay panic, Little Danvers, believe me,” Maggie said sagely. “Especially around someone as attractive as Lena Luthor.”

“You know what she looks like?” Kara asked.

“Well, duh,” Maggie said, rolling her eyes. “Unlike you, I don’t live under a rock. She testified in her brother’s trial two years ago, and she’s been in the news for scientific research since she was a teenager. Aren’t you supposed to be a journalist?”

“Hey, be gentle, Maggie,” Winn cautioned. “If she turns any redder she might spontaneously combust.”

“Shut up,” Kara said, shoving Winn’s shoulder.

“Am I the only one concerned about this?” Alex asked, voice thick with anxiety.

“Why are you upset?” Kara asked.

“Seriously?” Alex said with wide eyes. “You’re going on a date with Lena _Luthor_.”

“Pshh, it’s not a date!” Kara argued. “She said she didn’t even want to be friends, Alex, much less date. Besides, I don’t even know if she’s straight or gay or whatever.”

“She invited you to watch toy boat races, Kara,” Alex argued. “Who does that?”

“It’s a _thing_ ,” Kara shrugged. “We’re just gonna hang out for a bit with our dogs, that’s all.”

Alex looked at Kara like she was the biggest idiot she had ever met. “Well, even if it’s not a date—“

“Which it is,” Maggie added under her breath.

“—You need to be careful,” Alex cautioned. “She’s a Luthor, Kara.”

“I know that, Alex, but…” Kara sighed. “She’s not like her brother, okay? She’s kind and smart and just trying to make something of herself outside her brother’s shadow. I can relate to that, you know?”

“I know,” Alex said. “And I’m sure her being really pretty doesn’t hurt either.”

Kara scoffed. “It’s not like that. I mean, yes, I’m pretty sure her jaw can cut glass and I’m pretty sure her eyes are _actual_ gemstones, but that’s not the point.”

“You’re not helping your case here, Kara,” Winn muttered.

“All I’m saying is, she says she wants to do something good in this world,” Kara continued, ignoring Winn’s comment. “And I believe her.”

The others stared at Kara in shocked silence for a long moment. Kara just leaned back against the sofa and reached up to scratch Krypto’s ears.

“Wow, you’re totally smitten,” Maggie said finally.

“Maggie!” Kara groaned.

“What? It’s the truth,” her sister’s girlfriend shrugged.

“Not helping,” Kara complained.

“Look, I’m not going to tell you to not meet her, because I don’t tell you how to live your life,” Alex said. “Not that you’d listen if I tried. But just… be careful, okay? I know you, Kara. You’re a good judge of character most of the time, but you also _want_ to see the best in people. I don’t want you to go into this with rose-colored glasses and end up hurt.”

“I know,” Kara said. “And I promise that if anything is the least bit shady, I will come to you. But I really want to get to know her.”

Alex grinned suddenly. “She’s that pretty, huh?”

“You have _no idea_ ,” Kara replied honestly, and the room erupted into laughter and familiar teasing.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A date?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m not super happy with how this chapter turned out but... eh.

Lena was late.

She looked at the clock on the wall as she gathered her things from her office and groaned. It was nearly noon, so the boat races would be finishing up. Not that she actually wanted to see the boat races, really, that was just an excuse…

Not that it mattered. She had told Kara she was going to watch the boat races if nothing came up at the office and _of course_ something came up. She had come in at six a.m. on a Saturday morning and worked until noon helping to stop and track down a security hack on their medical research department. In all honesty, she was tempted to just take Keeva for a brief walk through the park and go home for a well-deserved nap.

“What do you think, sweet girl?” Lena asked as she clipped Keeva’s leash to her collar. The shepherd whined softly and stamped her feet, nails clicking against the slate floor of Lena’s office.

Anxiety sent a chill through Lena’s nerves, in spite of the warm day, as she made her way to the park, heels clicking on the sidewalk. She hadn’t even taken time to change into the comfortable shoes she kept in her office for walking Keeva. She was never late— Lionel had preached that it was unprofessional, and Lillian that it was unbecoming of a Luthor— “We mustn’t make people feel as if our time is worth more than theirs, even if it is,” her adoptive mother had said on more than one occasion.

Perhaps Kara would’ve already left, put off by Lena’s tardiness. Perhaps that was for the best. Lena wasn’t in the closet, necessarily, her family and friends knew that she was gay, but she kept her relationships private and out of the spotlight, unsure of how the business world might react, particularly now that she was CEO. Going on a date with a beautiful woman might change all that.

Not that this was a date, Lena reminded herself. She didn’t even know if Kara was gay or straight. Not that it mattered. Lena had made it clear that she wasn’t interested in friends, much less anything more, if Kara was even interested in that. But then the blonde had had such a look of disappointment in those gorgeous blue eyes that Lena had suggested boat races.

 _Freaking boat races. Who even does that?_ Lena groaned internally as she made her way further into the park, Keeva trotting along obediently beside her. Boat races were for families with children, not a full-grown lesbian and her dog. But here she was, hurrying to catch the tail-end of an event she had no interest in, all because she couldn’t resist a pair of pretty blue eyes.

She could almost hear Lex laughing at her now, the old Lex whose warm laughter made her want to punch him in the face, not the crazy Lex whose maniacal laughter sent chills down her spine.

When she finally reached the center of the park, the boat races were clearly finished, with only a few families picking up their things and clearing out. The line for the ice cream cart was insanely long, made up of children and parents carrying brightly-painted model sailboats. Lena scanned the crowd, heart stuck somewhere in her throat, but she could practically feel it sinking when she didn’t find familiar golden hair or a bouncing white canine.

Keeva nosed her leg and Lena looked down with a sigh.

“Looks like we missed them, girl,” she said, pulling the dog over to a bench near the edge of the sidewalk. Keeva rested her head on Lena’s knee and looked up at her with big brown eyes. “It’s for the best, you know.”

A sudden breeze caught Lena’s attention and she looked up just in time to see a flustered-looking Kara running toward her, with her own dog on her heels. The reporter came to a stop in front of her and took several exaggerated breaths while the dogs sniffed each other and wagged their tails excitedly.

“I’m so sorry I’m late!” Kara exclaimed. “There was an emergency at the, um, at Catco, yeah, big reporter emergency and I had to go… Then I had to swing by my apartment to get Krypto. Anyway, I’m so sorry.”

The Lena couldn’t help but smile up at Kara’s panic. “No, it’s fine, really, I just got here actually. There was an issue at L-Corp, so I’ve been working this morning as well.” Lena sniffed slightly, the smell of smoke filling her nose. “Was the emergency a fire?”

“What?” Kara exclaimed, reaching up with her free hand to push her glasses up on her nose. “Fire? What do you mean?”

“You just… You kind of smell like smoke,” Lena said, sniffing again. Kara’s striped sweater and corduroy skirt were impeccably clean, but the scent of smoke lingered.

“Oh, um, yeah, it was a, uh, copier,” Kara replied. “Major copier jam. Caught on fire. Never seen anything like it.”

Lena’s eyes widened in shock. “Sounds dangerous.”

Kara just shrugged and looked toward the dogs. “Oh my gosh, you two are so cute! Look, Lena, they like each other!”

Lena followed Kara’s gaze to where the two dogs were getting reacquainted. They circled each other, nostrils flared, tails wagging, until Krypto play-bowed toward Keeva and Keeva stamped her feet in excitement.

“I think you’re right,” Lena chuckled. “Maybe we should find a better spot for them to play.”

They made their way to the top of a nearby hill where the dogs had a large open area of grass where they could romp and wrestle. Lena watched the two as Kara pulled a blanket out of her back and spread it on the grass.

“I hope this is alright?” Kara smiled shyly. “I brought this so we could watch the boat races, but I guess we missed them.”

“It’s fabulous,” Lena replied, sitting down with a sigh and kicking off her shoes. “I forgot to bring a spare pair, so I’m just dying to get off my feet.”

“Oof, that’s rough,” Kara said, prodding Lena’s heels with her own simple leather flats. “Why do you torture yourself? You’re the CEO, surely you can set the dress code.”

Lena chuckled. “Well, I might be able to set the dress code for L-Corp, but I don’t set the rules for the rest of the business world, and in that world it’s easier for me to be taken seriously when I’m wearing three-inch heels that put me closer to eye-level with my male cohorts. It’s not fair, but it’s how things are.”

Kara made a small sound of understanding as she sat down beside Lena. They both turned and watched the dogs for several minutes. Keeva and Krypto were chasing one another in circles several feet away, yipping with excitement.

“Where did you get— Krypto, was it?” Lena asked.

“He’s a rescue, kind of,” Kara replied, reaching up to scratch at the back of her collar. “He was part of a military dog breeding program and didn’t quite make the cut, so he ended up in a shelter. I found him and just had to give him a home.”

“He definitely looks military, but he doesn’t act like it,” Lena remarked, as the dog in question rolled on his back in mock-submission to Keeva. He was an athletic-looking dog, clearly mostly shepherd, larger overall but sleeker in build than Keeva. His blue eyes flashed in the sunlight, a few shades lighter than his human’s eyes, but just as playful.

“Yeah. He’s really well trained, believe it or not,” Kara said sheepishly. “My sister, the FBI agent, signed us up with a professional trainer that works with military and law enforcement dogs. It was a lot of fun, actually, and we both did really well, but he’s a goofy dog and I just think dogs deserve to be dogs and have fun, you know what I mean?”

“I think you’re right,” Lena agreed. “Sometimes I think Keeva deserves more time to be a dog. She comes to work with me most days at L-Corp, and I try to get out of the office to walk her and play with her, but some days she’s cooped up with me.”

“Hey, I’m sure she loves just being with you,” Kara assured her. “I feel guilty that Krypto stays home so much when I’m working, but he has a good life, he’s healthy and loved. I’m sure it’s the same for Keeva.”

As if they knew they were being talked about, both dogs came trotting over. Keeva curled up gracefully beside Lena, while Krypto bounded over to Kara and collapsed onto her legs with a thump, tail wagging excitedly. Kara scratched at the dog’s head.

“Are you having fun, buddy? Did you make a new friend?” she asked and Krypto’s tail wagged in a blur. Kara pulled a packet of treats from her bag and offered one to the dog, and he took it with a surprisingly gentle mouth. Keeva’s tail wagged brightly at the sight of food and she squirmed until she was lying between Lena and Kara. She looked up at the blonde with her patented begging face.

“Oh, you little brat,” Lena hissed fondly. “Stop begging.”

“Can she have one?” Kara asked. “It’s just beef and chicken jerky.”

“Yes, she can have one,” Lena agreed, rubbing the dog’s rump.

Kara gave Keeva a long piece of jerky and the dog carefully held it between her paws, breaking it into three bites that she chewed and gulped down. Then she rolled onto her side, pressing firmly against Kara’s leg, and looked up at her with an adoring expression.

“Oh, I see how it is,” Lena said dramatically, reaching over and rubbing Keeva’s belly. “A new person gives you a treat and suddenly you’re in love with them. Good thing you’re not a guard dog.”

“Yep, chicken jerky wins them over every time,” Kara said with a grin.

Krypto trotted around to Lena and sat down in front of her, leveling her with a piercing blue gaze. He seemed to study her for a long moment, looking for whatever it is dogs look for in a human, before deciding she was acceptable. His tongue lolled out of the side of his mouth and he pawed at her hand, demanding she pet him.

“Krypto’s even easier to win over,” Kara told her. “Just scratch his ears and he’ll love you forever.”

Lena did as she was instructed. Krypto closed his eyes in bliss and leaned into her touch. The bronze tag on his collar gleamed in the light, a familiar stylized _S_ engraved in the metal.

“So, do you have a thing for Superman or…?” Lena let her voice trail off curiously as she ran her thumb over the tag.

“Oh, that,” Kara laughed awkwardly. “It was a gag gift from my cousin, since I named him Krypto.”

“It’s not exactly a name you hear everyday,” Lena commented, leading.

Suddenly Krypto was no longer content with Lena’s soft strokes to his neck and ears. With no warning, the massive dog pounced, knocking Lena back until he was laying on top of her torso. He licked her face with a slobbery tongue, as if doing his best to rid her of her carefully-applied makeup.

“Krypto, NO!” Kara exclaimed, moving to grab the dog’s collar. She hauled him off easily, looking down at Lena with wide eyes. “Are you okay?”

Before Lena could reply, Keeva had moved to take Krypto’s place, licking what remained of Lena’s face. White fur flew everywhere, sticking to Lena’s olive green blouse.

“Ugh, Keeva!” Lena exclaimed, sitting up and shoving the dog off her. “You jealous little— We’ve talked about this!”

The shepherd had the gall to look pleased with herself as she looked at Lena with warm brown eyes and wagged her tail happily. Lena rolled her eyes and wiped at her face.

“Sorry, he’s a little over-enthusiastic when it comes to affection,” Kara said, still holding Krypto back. She clipped a leash to the dog’s collar and he immediately settled down, sitting and leaning against her long nylon-clad legs.

“Keeva is as well, and she is a bit jealous when other dogs show me affection,” Lena replied. Finally she looked up at Kara. “How do I look?”

Kara’s eyes widened and she swallowed, the muscles in her throat straining. “You, um, you look gorgeous— I mean fine— I mean, _wow_ , um…”

Lena chuckled. _Okay, maybe not straight, then._ Kara blushed and looked down at her feet. Suddenly a rumbling noise caught Lena’s attention and she looked up at the blonde, who had turned an even deeper shade of red.

“Hungry?” Lena asked.

“I kind of skipped lunch,” Kara said sheepishly. “Have you eaten?”

“Not yet,” Lena replied.

“Well, would you like to go get something?” Kara asked. “There’s a place with amazing appetizers down on King Street, or a deli by Vista, or a little Chinese restaurant near Third and Vine that has the absolute best potstickers.”

“Any of those sound great,” Lena agreed. “I haven’t tried many restaurants in National City yet, so you choose. Just don’t make me walk too far.”

Kara let out a soft grunt of disapproval as Lena put her heels back on and attached Keeva’s leash. “Well, if it was closer, I’d take you to Ivy Street Grill, they have the best brunch specials all day. Or Noonan’s— I used to work there— they have the best coffee in National City, and don’t let anybody tell you anything different.”

“I guess we’ll have to try those another day,” Lena said before she could think about her words.

Kara’s head shot up from where she was folding the blanket. “Really?”

Lena blinked slowly, realizing what she had said. She bit her lip for a moment, then smiled softly and gestured toward the dogs. “Well, these two certainly need more play dates. And we humans will need food so we have the energy to keep up with them, right?”

Kara nodded rapidly. “Definitely.”

“So we’ll have to make plans,” Lena said, falling into her sharp business tone of voice. “I’ll pencil you in for lunch a few times a week, if you’d like. We can meet up and let the dogs have a break and grab something to eat. And maybe some weekends when neither of us have other plans, we can meet up as well. Sound good to you?”

“Uh, yeah, um,” Kara stuttered as she tucked the blanket away. “That sounds… kind of formal, but good, yeah.”

“Good.” Lena smiled widely. “So, have you decided? Appetizers, deli, or Chinese?”

“Hmm, I think I’m leaning toward the apps,” Kara replied.

“Alright then, lead the way,” Lena said, falling in step beside the blonde, dogs at each of their sides.

“Okay, but I’m warning you, people have been underestimating how much I can eat for years.”

“Oh, game on.”

——

“So, little Danvers, how did your date go?”

Kara scowled at her sister’s girlfriend from her spot on Alex’s couch. “I told you, it wasn’t a date.”

“Well, it sure sounded like one,” Maggie said as she filled up three bowls of pasta. “Trip to the park with your dogs, out for lunch. Sounds like a date.”

“Well, it wasn’t,” Kara scoffed. “It was a playdate for the dogs, I guess. And we had lunch together. But it wasn’t a date.”

“Uh-huh.” Maggie looked at Kara with raised eyebrows as she handed over her bowl of pasta.

“Give her a break, Mags,” Alex said, taking her own bowl from the smaller woman. “I think she’s disappointed that it _wasn’t_ a date.”

“I’m not sure what it was, honestly,” Kara told them. “I mean, she’s really great, nothing like you would expect. She’s funny and warm, but… I don’t know, it’s like she doesn’t really want to open up.”

“Well, can you blame her?” Maggie asked, sitting on the sofa so that she was on one end and Kara was on the other, with Alex in the middle sandwiched between her sister and her girlfriend. “I mean, after all the hell Lex caused and the mess with her company, she’s bound to have her walls up.”

“I don’t blame her, no,” Kara said around a bite of spaghetti bolognese. “I just… I dunno. I don’t know why I feel like this, but I just want her to trust me. I don’t want her to feel like she has to have those walls up around me.”

“It’s called a crush, Kara,” Alex deadpanned. “Leave it to Supergirl to have a crush on a Luthor.”

“She’s not just a Luthor, you know,” Kara said. “She’s adopted, kind of like me.”

“Did you schedule another not-date?” Maggie asked.

“Kind of,” Kara said. “We penciled each other in for lunch play dates twice a week so the dogs can play together. And every third Saturday unless something comes up. But she was so stiff when she talked about those, I couldn’t even tell if she was happy about meeting up or just wanted to let the dogs play. She might just be tolerating me for the sake of the dogs.”

“Oh my god, you sound like a divorced couple scheduling child visitation,” Alex grumbled.

“That’s kinda what it felt like, to be honest,” Kara nodded.

“Look, Kara, I’m not saying it’s going to lead anywhere,” Maggie said. “You don’t even know if she’s into women. But just give her time. You’re annoyingly easy to love, even if it’s just as a friend. Once she realizes how genuinely good you are, I bet things will get better. You’ll see.”

“You really think so?” Kara asked hopefully.

Maggie nodded. “I really do.”

Kara smiled over her bowl. “Thanks, Mags.”

Alex looked back and forth between the two of them like she was watching a tennis match. “I can’t believe my girlfriend is giving my sister dating advice.”

“Hey, it’s not like you can give her any,” Maggie teased. “You were an even bigger gay mess when we met.”

“Yeah, well, you still fell for me, so what does that say about you?” Alex replied, leaning in for a kiss.

“Okay, not while I’m on the couch,” Kara exclaimed, poking her sister’s undefended side. “Nope, not okay. Nope. Stop it.”

Alex just flipped her the bird and they didn’t stop kissing until Kara smacked them with a pillow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For folks who haven’t seen my update on my other story or on tumblr, my grandmother’s health has declined and she’s receiving hospice care. So my updates are going to be sporadic and not very frequent for an unforeseeable amount of time. So comment and send good thoughts, it’s very rough right now.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Superfriends and fluff

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> She’s back with excessive fluffiness!
> 
> Hi all! My personal life is going to slowly go back to a new normal now, so hopefully I will be posting again soon.

Chapter Four

“Wait, I thought you were already dating?”

Kara sighed and threw her head back over the arm of the sofa, looking over to where James was getting more drinks from the kitchen. The rest of their circle of friends— Alex, Maggie, Winn, and even J’onn— were gathered in her living room around a stack of board games. Krypto was lying on his back beside J’onn, full to bursting on a mixture of dog food, pizza, boneless chicken wings, tortilla chips, and whatever other foods he could earn with his most pitiful begging expression.

“We’re not dating. We’re friends, I think,” Kara said, brow crinkling.

“You think?” Alex asked. “Kara, honey, I know you’re an alien, but I thought you had learned basic Earth social structures, at least well enough to know if you’re friends with a person or not.”

“Well, it’s kind of… complicated,” Kara explained. “Lena’s… complicated. She’s very private—“

“Can’t really blame her,” Winn commented before sipping his beer.

“When we first started meeting up she was pretty adamant that she didn’t want any friends, we just got together because our dogs get along,” Kara continued. “But we’ve talked a lot, and not just about the dogs.”

“Have you talked about whether or not she’s gay?” Maggie asked.

“Maggie!” Kara exclaimed.

“What? Seems like relevant information if you want to ask her out,” Maggie shrugged before taking another bite of pizza.

“She kind of has a point, Kara,” James said, prodding at Kara’s legs until she moved them so he could sit back down. She immediately plopped her legs back over his lap.

“What part of _private_ do you guys not get?” she asked exasperatedly.

“If she is, she’s not out publicly,” Maggie continued to speculate as she swallowed her pizza. “But I can understand why someone in her position wouldn’t be.”

“This is true,” Alex agreed.

“So what do you two talk about?” J’onn asked curiously.

“We talk about work sometimes, movies, music, books, different places and things around the city, things we’ve done or things we’d like to do,” Kara replied. “She’s really… We’re similar, in some ways, but not in everything. I really like her. She’s a good friend, and I think, if she’s interested, we would be good together as more. I just don’t want to ruin our friendship… I mean, she’s already standoffish about even having a _friend_ , I can’t imagine how she’d react to me asking her out or to be my _girlfriend_.”

“Kara… Have you thought about what might happen if she said yes?” J’onn asked seriously.

Kara closed her eyes and groaned. “Don’t get my hopes up.”

“I don’t think that’s what J’onn means, Kara,” Alex said. “What if you ask Lena out and she says yes? What if you date and end up as girlfriends?”

“I still don’t see what’s bad about this scenario,” Kara deadpanned.

“Kara, eventually you would have to tell her you’re Supergirl,” James said softly, placing a comforting hand on her knee. “With me it was easy, I already knew. And even with Mon-El—“

“Never understood what you saw in him,” Winn muttered.

“—He knew you were an alien and Supergirl,” James continued. “But Lena… That would be complicated, to say the least.”

“Even more complicated than telling any other human, I might add,” Alex said.

“I know, I know, really, I do,” Kara told them. “I just… Lena’s not like her brother, I swear. She’s okay with aliens, at least in the abstract. Just last week she was super excited about some new medical technology L-Corp is working on that will benefit alien refugees, and she donates a portion of her own salary to a program that helps aliens that are new to Earth find homes.”

“How does she feel about Supergirl?” Winn asked.

“I— I’m not sure,” Kara stuttered. “I kind of change the subject any time she comes up.”

“Not necessarily a bad idea, but also not helpful,” J’onn commented.

“Ugh… Why does it all have to be so complicated!” Kara exclaimed. “If I was just Kara and she was just Lena this would be so much easier.”

“But you’re not,” Alex interjected.

“Not helpful!” Kara shouted.

“I agree with Little Danvers here, not helpful,” Maggie said, poking her girlfriend’s shoulder. She looked at Kara over her glass of wine with a serious expression. “I think you should go for it.”

“What?” Kara exclaimed.

“Seriously?” Alex asked.

“Mmhmm,” Maggie nodded sagely. “She’ll never know if she doesn’t ask. A girl’s gotta shoot her shot sometime. Worst that can happen is Lena’s straight and rejects her, or maybe she’s gay but doesn’t like Kara like that. Kara already likes her, so it’ll suck, but at least she won’t waste anymore time pining and wondering what if.”

“See, I feel like the worst case is Lena accepts and then she finds out Kara is Supergirl and reacts badly,” Alex argued.

“Possibly evil villain level badly,” Winn added.

“But also, best case scenario,” Maggie said. “Kara asks her out, she says yes, they fall in love, Lena finds out Kara is Supergirl, she accepts it, they fall even more in love, they live happily ever after, and it’s a total Romeo and Juliet story but with two women and a lot less suicide.”

“I like Maggie’s ending better,” James said.

“Me too,” Kara nodded. She looked over to where J’onn was absentmindedly rubbing Krypto’s belly, a thoughtful expression etched on his face. “J’onn? What do you think?”

J’onn looked at her in silence for a moment before speaking. “I agree… with Maggie. I think you should ask Lena Luthor out on a date.”

Kara stared at J’onn in shock, as did the rest of the group.

“Seriously J’onn?” Alex asked.

“Yeah, Space Dad agrees with me!” Maggie shouted victoriously, almost spilling her wine.

“Why?” Kara asked, confused. She had expected J’onn to side with Alex.

“I can see how much you like her, Kara,” J’onn said thoughtfully. “It may not ever get to the point that you reveal your identity, but if it does, I trust your judgment. Your identity is yours to reveal to whomever you trust, and you know better than anyone the possible consequences of such a reveal. I know you wouldn’t do it lightly. But you also deserve the chance to be happy, and if you think Lena Luthor might make you happy, then you should take that leap. We’ll all be here to support you no matter what the outcome is, you know that.”

Kara floated off the sofa and wrapped J’onn in a tight hug. “Thanks, J’onn.”

J’onn patted her back affectionately. “Anytime, Supergirl.”

Suddenly Krypto decided he was very jealous of being left out of the cuddle session. In one smooth motion he rolled over, jumped up, and knocked Kara and J’onn to the floor before rooting his way between them.

“Krypto!”

——

It was decided: Kara was going to ask Lena out on an actual date the next time she saw her. She was going to be brave, she was going to shoot her shot, she was… freaking out, but that was okay. She was going to do it, and she would deal with the consequences, whatever they were.

The only problem was, she wasn’t sure when she was going to see Lena again. Two weeks had passed since the game night when she had made her momentous decision, and in those two weeks something had come up to cancel every single one of their planned outings with Krypto and Keeva. Lena had cancelled twice for emergency meetings at L-Corp, and Kara had cancelled six times, once completely missing Lena at the park, all because of Supergirl emergencies. A group of petty robbers and thugs had somehow managed to get hold of alien weapons, and they were robbing various businesses throughout the city. They had even caused severe damage to the Children’s Hospital in one of their attacks. Quite frankly, Kara was tired of them.

“James, I swear, if there is one more attack with alien weapons I’m just going to scream at them for ruining my plans,” Kara huffed as she looked at the clock. It was ten minutes until she was supposed to go pick up Krypto and meet Lena and Keeva for a walk and lunch, which meant that those thugs would probably attack somewhere in five minutes.

“I’m sure that would work,” James said dryly. “They would probably just put down their weapons and all the money or jewelry they’re stealing and apologize for ruining Supergirl’s lunch date.”

“Did you say date?”

Kara rolled her eyes and looked toward the side of her cubicle. Mike— also known as Mon-El— was her ex. They had dated for a while when the Daxamite first arrived on Earth, but then she broke up with him after realizing that the only thing she really liked about him was the bits of shared history they had as a Kryptonian and a Daxamite. In spite of the fact that since then he had slept with anyone with a functional frontal lobe and nice boobs, he still didn’t quite seem to be over the breakup and was way too invested in Kara’s (currently nonexistent) dating life. He had also gotten a job as an intern at CatCo, though Kara wasn’t sure how he had managed that or how he managed to keep the job since she never saw him doing any actual work.

“Just lunch with a friend,” Kara insisted, looking at James with wide _help me_ eyes.

“Lunch date can be a platonic term,” James supplied, raising his eyebrows questioningly at Kara.

“Oh, another English colloquialism,” Mon-El nodded. “I understand.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Kara said, standing up and gesticulating wildly with her hands. “It doesn’t matter because nothing’s ever going to happen and—“

“Kara?”

Kara froze, mid-gesticulation, before turning with wide eyes.

“Lena!” she exclaimed, taking in the brunette’s impeccable appearance. “Surprise visit to CatCo?”

“No, I’m… I’m here to see you, actually,” Lena said with a smile. “I thought, since all of our meetups keep getting cancelled, I might try to meet you here. I hope that’s alright.”

Lena glanced around to where James was leaning against the wall of Kara’s cubicle and Mon-El was still peeking around the corner.

“That’s fine,” Kara said brightly. “Great, yeah.”

“Actually, there is one more thing I wanted to ask you,” Lena said shyly. “L-Corp is hosting a party this weekend. It’s a gala fundraiser for the Children’s Hospital after that horrific attack on their new building. I was hoping you’d come.”

Kara opened her mouth to reply but was interrupted.

“Gala? Is that like a party?” Mon-El piped up, moving to stand beside her.

“No! No, it’s not,” Kara huffed, shaking her head and giving Lena a meaningful look as she continued shaking her head. _Please ignore the idiot, please._

“You are literally my only friend in National City,” Lena said with a bittersweet smile. “Most people wouldn’t touch a Luthor with a ten-foot pole, but…” Lena glanced down and bit her lip, a gesture that made Kara’s heart skip a beat. “It would mean a lot to me if you were there.”

“Of course I’ll come,” Kara agreed quickly. “I’m honored.”

“I love parties!” Mon-El interrupted with a chuckle, and Kara shot him a murderous look. “Could I come too?”

“No,” Kara said firmly, but her denial didn’t seem to affect either Mon-El or Lena.

“Oh, well, of course your friend can come,” Lena said brightly. “What’s your name?”

“Mike,” Mon-El lied smoothly, “of the interns.”

“Well, Mike of the interns,” Lena said with a smirk, “find yourself a nice suit and I’ll see you there.” She turned to Kara. “So, that’s settled. Lunch?”

“Yeah, I’ll meet you at the elevator, just let me get my jacket,” she said, turning back to her desk. James was still leaning against the cubicle, watching everything with amusement. Kara leaned over to whisper in his ear. “Call Alex and tell her if there’s an attack with the alien weapons, the DEO is on their own for the next hour. I am _busy_.” She pulled back as he nodded and turned to Mon-El and huffed. “I’ll deal with _you_ later.”

“Ready?” Lena said brightly as she approached the elevators.

“Ready,” Kara replied with a bright smile.

——

Lena’s nerves were in overdrive as they rode the elevator down and then walked to the sidewalk outside Catco. That hadn’t gone how she had intended at all. Yes, she had gone to Catco to meet Kara for lunch hoping that would mean neither of them would cancel. Yes, she had meant to ask Kara to go to the gala. But she had meant to ask her over lunch. And she had meant to ask Kara to accompany her to the gala as her _date_ , not just as a friend. But then she had walked in on Kara talking to her two male coworkers, and it was clear from his facial expression that the one in the cardigan liked Kara as more than friends, and she had lost her nerve and asked her right then and left out the part about being her date.

_Stupid stupid stupid—_

“So no Keeva today?” Kara asked, pulling Lena out of her spiral of negativity.

“Oh, no,” Lena said. “She’s in heat, the poor dear, so she’s sequestered in my apartment for three weeks. We can go get Krypto, though, if you want.”

“Oh, no, that’s fine,” Kara shook her head. “It can just be the two of us, I don’t mind if you don’t. I mean, I know when we first met you were pretty adamant about not being friends and how we were only doing things together for the dogs.”

Lena flushed. “Well, yes. But I had hoped you realized we were well past that at this point. I consider you my friend, Kara. My only friend in National City, honestly.”

“Friend, yeah,” Kara said, her voice heavy with something Lena couldn’t quite figure out as she looked away from Lena’s gaze. “Ooo, we haven’t tried Noonan’s yet! They have a big variety, and I bet you would like their lunch specials. They even have _kale_.”

“I do eat foods other than kale, you know,” Lena chuckled. “And sure, Noonan’s sounds great.”

She followed Kara into the restaurant and the effervescent blonde waved at the hostess and bartender as they passed and found a booth. Kara didn’t even bother pulling out a menu, just began listing off suggestions to Lena, none of which included kale.

“You come here a lot, then?” Lena speculated as she sipped at her glass of water.

Kara shrugged. “Yeah, I guess. I used to work here, before I got my job at Catco. And now I come here at least once a week for lunch and probably that often for dinner with my sister and her girlfriend.”

Lena almost choked on her water. “Oh, um…”

“Are you okay?” Kara asked.

“Yes, I’m fine. It just went down the wrong pipe, I suppose,” Lena sputtered. “I was just surprised, that’s all.”

“Why? Because my sister’s a lesbian?” Kara asked, and Lena sputtered again. “Is that a problem?”

“No, no, it’s definitely not a problem,” Lena said quickly. “Please, Kara, don’t think badly of me, it’s not a problem. I just… Growing up, the Luthors were rather conservative. I’m still getting used to talking about sexuality so openly, I suppose. I mean, I know it’s the twenty-first century and times are changing for the better, but in my experience anything other than heteronormative relationships were discussed in hushed whispers and with shameful undertones. It’s definitely not the way I feel about it, but it’s just… different. Refreshingly so, but sometimes it still surprises me.”

“Oh,” Kara replied simply, blinking slowly. After a moment she nodded. “That kind of thing never made sense to me, I guess. Where I grew up it was totally normal to love whomever you wanted, no matter their gender.”

Lena’s eyes widened. “Where on Earth was that?”

Now it was Kara who snorted into her drink. “Oh, um… Canada. Small town, but very progressive.”

“Right,” Lena said, nodding.

The waitress brought their food, two burgers, one with a side of French fries and the other with a side salad— Lena had given in and ordered the burger on Kara’s recommendation, but she wasn’t going to order a fried side dish to completely sabotage her daily calorie intake. Lena ate a few bites of her burger and poked at her salad absentmindedly.

“What’s wrong?” Kara asked, pulling her attention back.

“Oh, um, nothing,” Lena replied, forcing herself to take a bite of her salad.

“Lena, you stared at your plate for a solid two minutes before you took that bite,” Kara said patiently. “There must be something on your mind.”

“Well, it’s just…” Lena began, putting down her fork and twisting her napkin in her hands. “I’ve never told anyone this, other than Lex. He wasn’t as rigid in his thinking as our parents, you see. He supported me, but even he said it was better for business if I kept it to myself, or even tried not to be… well…”

“Lena, you can tell me anything,” Kara said, reaching across the table to capture Lena’s fidgeting hand with her own. The soft, warm touch broke through Lena’s mental walls.

“I’m gay,” Lena said quickly, her voice louder than she meant. She quickly drew her hand away from Kara’s and covered her mouth, looking around with wide eyes to make sure nobody overheard her.

“Lena,” Kara sighed. “Oh, Lena, it’s okay. Thank you for trusting me.”

Lena blushed. “You’re really okay with it?”

“Of course I am,” Kara said. “I mean, I’m pansexual, so—“

“Wait, what?” Lena exclaimed. Her mind was swirling.

“Pansexual,” Kara repeated. “Some people say bisexual and mean that same thing, I suppose. But pansexual to me just means I’m attracted to people of any gender: male, female, neither, other, whatever. It doesn’t mean I’m attracted to everybody, but gender isn’t the deciding factor for whether or not I find someone attractive. Does that make sense?”

“Yes, it does,” Lena said, looking at Kara with wide eyes. “Oh, oh my…”

“Does that… Does that bother you?” Kara asked.

“No, it doesn’t, I’m just processing,” Lena told her. “So, the two men you were talking to at Catco…”

“Exes, both of them,” Kara shrugged. “James is still a good friend, honestly. Mo— Mike is… well, he’s annoying. I still don’t think he’s over the breakup, to be honest, but I’m no longer interested so…”

“Oh, and I invited him to the gala!” Lena exclaimed. “I’m so sorry, that’ll be so awkward! I can uninvite him, you know. It’s not exactly polite, but...”

“No, don’t do that. It’s fine, really,” Kara insisted. “I’m used to ignoring him at Catco, I can ignore him at the gala. Especially if I have you there to talk to.”

“Yes,” Lena said, her mind still whirling. Kara wasn’t with either of those men. Kara wasn’t straight. Kara liked women, too. Perhaps… She took a deep breath and collected her thoughts. “Kara, there’s one more thing. When I asked you to go to the gala… Well, I… I wasn’t sure how you would feel about me asking, so I thought it safest to ask you to go as a friend, but I really meant… I would really like it if you would accompany me as my date.”

Kara’s eyes went wide, sparkling turquoise in the golden light that hung above the booth. “Like a _date_ date? Like not just friends but _more_ date? That kind of date?”

Lena chuckled. “Yes, Kara. That kind of date.”

“Oh my gosh,” Kara said, slumping back in her chair. Then, inexplicably, she began to giggle. “I can’t believe this!”

“Can’t believe what?” Lena asked nervously.

“A couple of weeks ago, I decided that the next time we were able to get together I was going to woman up and ask you on a real date,” Kara laughed. “And you beat me to it!”

“You… You mean, you were going to ask me out?” Lena gasped.

“Yes!” Kara replied.

“Well, if you’d rather do that—“ Lena began.

“No!” Kara exclaimed, reaching across the table and grasping Lena’s nervous fidgeting hands once again. “No, this is perfect, actually.” Her demeanor suddenly became serious. “I would love to accompany you to the L-Corp gala as your date, Lena. Are you sure that’s a good idea? I mean, you just told me yourself that your family isn’t okay with same-sex relationships and that it could affect your business. Are you sure you want to take a woman as your date as a gala? I wouldn’t be offended if you wanted to say we were just friends.”

This time Lena grasped Kara’s hand and squeezed. “I’m sure. I think it’s time I owned that part of my identity. Like I said before, this is the twenty-first century. Things are changing for the better, and things will only continue to get better if we’re brave and open with our identities. If I had known someone who was out and proud when I was younger, I think I would’ve been much more comfortable in my own skin. So I think it’s time.”

“Well, for what it’s worth, I’m proud of you,” Kara said with a smile. “And I’m honored to accompany you on such a momentous occasion. I’ll be with you every step of the way.”

The waitress brought their checks and they quickly finished their meals, realizing that their lunch breaks were quickly winding down. When they finished and headed back out of the restaurant, Lena felt as if a huge weight had been lifted from her chest, but also suddenly nervous. The air between them had shifted, still comfortable but thick with promise that hadn’t been there before.

“So I’ll text you with details about the gala,” Lena said finally, breaking the silence.

“Sounds good,” Kara replied brightly with that smile that made butterflies flutter in Lena’s stomach every time. “I can’t wait.”

“I’ll see you then, I suppose,” Lena told her as they stood on the sidewalk.

“Okay,” Kara replied. “I guess I better get going then.”

“Right,” Lena agreed, watching awkwardly as Kara turned away. Suddenly a thought crossed her mind. “Oh, um, Kara!”

The reporter turned. “Yes?”

“I needed to ask you one more thing,” Lena said, her voice soft. “I know it’s kind of a strange favor, but… I need to get in touch with Supergirl.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I brought in he who must not be named but he’s not going to get a big part, I just really love/hate that scene in S2 where he invites himself to Lena’s gala because Kara is so done with his BS. How tf the writers thought that was the best romantic pairing and not Supercorp I will NEVER understand but anyway.
> 
> Doggos will be back soon. But the humans (well, and the alien) have to get together on their own as well. And I loved writing the Noonan’s scene between them.
> 
> Next chapter: Lena meets Supergirl and the Gala.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena meets Supergirl  
> An interrupted first date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so admittedly a lot of this is taken from Episode 2x05, which is one of my favorite Supergirl episodes ever, but with some added elements to make it an actual Date between Lena and Kara. Also, yes, Cadmus is still a thing and will play a major part in this story.

Kara stared at the gray outline of the L-Corp building, hands clenched into fists at her sides. The light in the highest office was still burning, and she could just make out the outline of Lena’s silhouette sitting at her desk, working even later than usual. She had followed Kara’s instructions perfectly, leaving the door to her balcony open and staying late to wait for Supergirl’s arrival.

Guilt and anxiety pooled in Kara’s chest like a deadweight, heavy enough that if it were a real thing it might pull her out of the sky. Up until this point, she had never met Lena as Supergirl. She wasn’t sure if a disguise of a ponytail and glasses and awkward mannerisms would fool someone as smart as Lena, especially after she had spent so much time with Kara Danvers.

Part of Kara hoped it wouldn’t.

She didn’t want to lie to Lena. It felt wrong on a soul-deep level. It wasn’t that Kara didn’t trust Lena, she already did. But Kara’s secret identity came with high stakes, and Lena knowing could make her a target, could put everyone Kara loved in danger. They weren’t there quite yet. Soon, Kara hoped, but not yet.

“Stop fidgeting,” she mumbled to herself as she flew closer to the office. “Supergirl doesn’t fidget, Kara Danvers does.”

She landed on the balcony with a small thud, and Lena turned with a look of confusion that quickly turned to one of elation.

“Supergirl!” she exclaimed, and the raw excitement in her voice sent a nervous chill up Kara’s spine.

Kara put her fists on her hips, assuming Supergirl’s trademark pose, and strode into the office, careful to avoid direct eye contact.

“You wanted to see me?”she said, her voice coming out louder and sharper than she intended.

“Yeah, um, thank you for coming,” Lena began, her earlier excitement leeched from her tone. “I wanted to invite you to my party.”

“Kara Danvers told me you were going on with the fundraiser,” Kara said, bracing herself. She turned and leveled Lena with her most authoritative expression. “You can’t. It’s definitely going to be a target for this gang.”

Lena didn’t even falter. “Well, that’s why I need you there to protect it. With Supergirl in attendance, I know my guests and I will be safe.”

Kara’s brow furrowed as she studied Lena. “Do you like to take risks, Miss Luthor?”

“Well, you can’t live in fear,” Lena said, her voice low. You more than anyone must understand that. Time and again you risk everything to see justice done. Is it so hard to believe that I feel the same way? Or are you one of those people who think there’s no such thing as a good Luthor?”

Kara looked down, unable to hold Lena’s intense gaze. She was sure that at any moment the other woman was going to see right through her. But she couldn’t let her think that about her, about Supergirl, so she looked up at her and met her gaze once again.

“I believe everyone should be judged on their own merits.”

“Then judge me on mine,” Lena replied. “This party must happen and I am asking you for your help.”

“I guess I have no choice,” Kara sighed.

“Thank you,” Lena said, tone thick with relief. Then her expression changed to one of excitement yet again. “So Kara and I will see you tomorrow night?”

“Right!” Kara exclaimed as her heart began to hammer inside her chest. “Yes, Kara and I will both be at your party.”

She made her way quickly toward the balcony, looking away from Lena so she wouldn’t see the panicked expression she couldn’t keep off her face.

“Crap!” she hissed before taking off into the night sky.

——

“I’m sorry, you did what now?”

Kara groaned as Alex applied a thick green salve to the burn from the alien weapons. She got hurt so rarely she sometimes forgot how bad it sucked.

“Kara _and_ Supergirl are supposed to be at Lena’s party tonight,” Kara huffed.

“Wow,” Winn said from where he was standing in the doorway of the medbay.

“How exactly are you planning to pull that one off?” Alex asked.

“I, um, I hadn’t actually thought that far ahead yet,” Kara admitted as Alex positioned a sun lamp directly over her.

“Kara!” Alex exclaimed. “That party starts in like three hours! How do you not have a plan?”

“She just asked me last night! Well, I mean, she asked _me_ a couple of days ago. She asked Supergirl last night. And I’ve been all over town taking down this gang with alien weapons in every minute of my spare time since then! I barely even had time to walk Krypto! I haven’t even picked out a dress!”

“I can always get you one from the DEO closet,” Alex offered. “I can’t say it’ll be alien-weapon-proof but at least it’ll be bulletproof, not that you need it.”

“Thanks, Alex,” Kara sighed.

“But that still doesn’t solve the problem of how you can be two people in the same place at the same time, Kara!” Alex continued.

“Maybe J’onn can do his impersonation of you again, that’s always fun,” Winn offered.

“No, Supergirl needs to be there with all her powers, and he definitely isn’t going on a date for me,” Kara said with a shudder.

“Yeah, that could end badly,” Winn acknowledged. “Hey, wait a minute! Have you ever seen _Mrs. Doubtfire_?”

——

Three and a half hours later, Kara walked into the L-Corp fundraiser gala with Winn at her side. She was late, but it had taken a little longer than she had expected to find a dress in the DEO closet that would cover the injury she had gotten from the alien weapon. Winn was fiddling with a small device in his hands.

“Okay, so the Muon Particle Detector will let us know if there are any weapons within one hundred feet,” Winn said, nodding as if to reassure Kara or maybe to reassure himself, she couldn’t be certain.

“Are you sure?” Kara asked nervously.

Winn looked affronted. “Have I ever been wrong before?” She gave him a _look_. “Oh-kay, this time I am sure.”

Kara wasn’t paying attention. She saw Lena across the room, and the sight sent her nerves buzzing but in a good way. The brunette looked absolutely stunning. Her hair was pinned up in an elegant updo, and her dark cocktail dress hugged her curves in all the right ways. The high collar emphasized her elegant neck and sharp jaw. Her makeup was, as usual, absolutely flawless, with burgundy red lipstick and dark eyeshadow that made her green eyes glow in the gold lighting.

“I see Lena,” Kara said quickly. “Commence Operation Doubtfire!”

“Okay,” Winn whispered, heading off in the opposite direction.

“Lena!” Kara called as she approached.

Lena turned quickly, her eyes widening as she took in Kara’s appearance. The emerald green dress was definitely out of Kara’s normal comfort zone, but Alex had insisted it flattered her. The green silk clung to her curves, and the thin straps did nothing to obstruct the view of her muscular shoulders and arms. Sometimes Kara felt that her physique was too muscular, but the way Lena was looking at her now, well, maybe it was just right.

“Kara, you look lovely,” Lena said, reaching out and taking Kara’s hand in greeting.

“So do you, wow,” Kara said, gesturing to Lena’s dress.

Lena smiled in return. “I’m so glad to see you, um… Have you seen Supergirl?”

“I’m, uh, sure she’s on her way,” Kara said, looking away from Lena’s intense gaze.

Suddenly Winn walked up, right on cue, and bumped into Lena’s shoulder, drawing her attention away. It gave Kara the opportunity to zip away.

“Oh, I am so… Did I spill this on you?” Kara heard Winn call as she zipped around a corner and used her super speed to change from her dress and into her Supergirl uniform. She took to the air and landed beside Lena and Winn just as he called out for some seltzer.

“Supergirl,” Lena greeted with a smile, “I’m glad you could make it.”

“I still think this might be a bad idea,” Kara said, striding forward.

“Well, why don’t we wait and see how the evening pans out,” Lena said, her voice practically a purr. Her tone combined with her sultry appearance made Kara’s heart race, but she had to maintain her poise.

“I’ll check the perimeter for any activity, and I’ll be back at the first sign of danger,” Kara said, quickly backing away and flying off. She hurried to where she had left her gown, changed from her suit, and by the time she returned to Lena’s side, the brunette was still staring into the sky.

“Kara!” Lena exclaimed. “You just missed Supergirl!”

“Did I? Golly!” Kara shrugged and Lena looked at her with a bemused expression.

Lena tucked her arm around Kara’s and led her around the party, introducing her to some of the guests as her date for the evening. Kara was surprised that even James was there, but this time as an upstanding citizen of the community, donating some of his earnings as Catco’s interim CEO to the Children’s Hospital. Some folks seemed surprised when Lena introduced Kara as her date, but they were all friendly and none of them were disrespectful of Lena and Kara being together. Kara could practically feel the excited energy that radiated off Lena with every successful introduction, and it thrilled her. As they walked away from one older couple who had nothing but smiles for the two of them, she heard Lena sigh.

“Everything okay?” she asked. Lena looked up at her with wide eyes.

“Yes, actually,” the brunette said with a bright smile. “It’s hard to believe… I thought for so long that I needed to hide part of myself away, but so far everyone has just been lovely, haven’t they?”

“They really have,” Kara agreed. “I think a lot of that is also the fact that everyone here already respects you, even likes you. They all seem to be happy that you’re happy.”

“I suppose,” Lena said, smoothing down her dress. She looked at Kara with a soft smile. “I am happy, you know. Very happy that I’m here with you.”

“Likewise,” Kara said with a grin. They were approaching one of the buffet tables, and Kara’s eyes widened. “Oh my gosh, Lena, are those potstickers?”

Lena chuckled. “They are indeed. They’re from your favorite place near Third and Vine. And there are some pastries on the dessert table from that little bistro we visited last week, I know you loved them.”

Kara’s eyes widened. “Did you… Did you seriously put certain foods on the menu specifically because I like them?”

“Well, I like them too, don’t get me wrong, but yes,” Lena blushed. “Is that too much?”

“No, it’s really thoughtful,” Kara told her, blushing as well. “I really appreciate it.”

A dark-haired woman that Kara recognized as Lena’s assistant hurried to her side and whispered something in her ear. Lena’s spine straightened as she spoke and Kara could see business-Lena was taking over.

“I have to go deliver a short thank-you speech,” Lena said. “But I’ll be right back, okay? Just enjoy the food while I’m gone.”

“Okay, you go be the fabulous hostess that you are,” Kara said, reaching out to squeeze Lena’s hand in support. The brunette looked down at their joined hands like she didn’t quite know what to make of the contact before her features softened and she looked up at Kara with soft eyes once more before following her assistant off through the crowd.

Kara grabbed a plate and began loading it down with food, stuffing a potsticker in her mouth as she did so. She was practically glowing at the thought of Lena picking her favorite foods as part of the menu just to be sure there was something she would like, so she didn’t see the person approaching from behind her.

“What’s your name, beautiful?”

Kara froze momentarily to gather her patience before turning to see Mon-el standing behind her.

“Oh, it’s you,” Mon-El said, looking her up at down. “You look very nice tonight, Kara.”

Kara swallowed a very large bite of potsticker before looking up and down at Mon-El’s suit, a suit that she knew had to cost more than he made in a month as an intern. “So do you. Where’d you get the suit?”

“I got one of those little plastic rectangle things that you buy things with,” Mon-El told her. “Do you like—“

“You got a credit card? How?” Kara exclaimed. Even with a DEO-issued fake ID, Mon-El didn’t have a credit history to get approved for a credit card.

“Well, technically it belongs to that new girl at Catco,” Mon-El said with a smarmy grin.

Kara rolled her eyes. “Why am I not surprised?”

She wanted to launch into a fierce tirade, but was interrupted by Lena’s voice ringing out over a microphone. She turned to see Lena standing on a slightly elevated podium, speaking to the crowd.

“I want to thank everyone for coming tonight, and for your generous donations to the Luthor Children’s Hospital,” Lena began.

“So you’re dating Lena Luthor?” Mon-El asked. “Isn’t her brother some kind of alien-hating psycho?”

“Shh, be quiet!” Kara admonished. She looked around the party, scanning for anything out of the ordinary.

“What are you doing?”

Kara huffed in annoyance at Mon-El’s interruption. “You know that gang that’s been robbing people using alien tech? They could very well attack tonight’s party, and now would be an opportune moment to do it.”

“So are you here on a date or are you here as Supergirl?” Mon-El asked.

“Both,” Kara huffed. “When you’re a superhero, sometimes you have to be both.”

The audience began clapping and Kara realized with a flare of irritation that she had missed most of Lena’s speech. But nothing seemed amiss amongst the party guests, so Kara also breathed a sigh of relief that maybe, just maybe, Lena’s party was safe. Lena was speaking to several donors as she made her way through the crowd, and Kara found herself swaying to the music as soft jazz began to play again and couples took to the dance floor.

“I miss dancing,” Mon-El said pensively. “I used to dance a lot on Daxam.”

“Yeah, we danced on Krypton, too,” Kara agreed.

“Well then,” Mon-El said, holding out a hand in invitation. Kara looked at his hand with a raised brow. “Come on, just one dance between friends who miss their planets?”

Kara nodded then, and sat her plate on a nearby table. She took Mon-El’s hand and he quickly took her waist with his other hand and began leading her around the dance floor. Kara remembered some of the music and dances from Krypton, and she imagined the ones from Daxam must’ve been similar. Their meters and steps didn’t quite fit with the Earth music that was currently playing, but that didn’t stop Mon-El from trying to match it. He might’ve been a skilled dancer on Daxam, but as he led Kara around the dance floor with sweeping steps and turned them so quickly that her head whipped backward, she couldn’t say the same of his skill on Earth.

“This is nice,” he said as the music slowed, and Kara couldn’t bring herself to agree.

A hand appeared on Mon-El’s shoulder and he turned quickly, stepping away from Kara in the process. Lena was standing behind him with a raised brow, looking between the two of them. Kara swallowed nervously, pulling even further away from Mon-El, who was puffing out his chest as if in challenge. Lena just looked at him as if he were dirt on the toe of her shoes.

“Mind if I cut in?” she asked finally, looking at Mon-El with her own expression of challenge.

“No, not at all,” Kara said. She grabbed Lena’s hand in her own and pulled her further onto the dance floor as the music started back up. Kara tried leading, but she found that much like Mon-El, her feet couldn’t quite match the rhythm of the soft jazz that was playing.

“Oh my goodness, you’re terrible!” Lena chuckled, but there was no derision in her tone. She moved Kara’s hands and then her own, until her spare hand rested on Kara’s side and the other held Kara’s firmly. “Here, how about you let me lead for a bit, hmm? Just slow down and move with me, okay?”

“Okay,” Kara agreed, her voice little more than a soft squeak. After a few moments she felt her body relax into Lena’s lead as they swayed amongst the other dancers. “You’re a really good dancer.”

Lena snorted. “Hardly. When I was thirteen my mother signed me up for ballroom dancing classes. She said it was good for a girl of my station. But I was hopeless, two left feet and all that. But swaying to jazz like this I can handle.”

“Well, I like dancing with you,” Kara insisted, and Lena blushed. The music slowed and Kara could feel their bodies swaying closer, soft heat building in the small space between them.

Suddenly a shrill beeping interrupted Kara’s thoughts. She froze and turned quickly, scanning the crowd. Winn was holding the Muon Particle Detector in his hands and it was going off which meant…

“Kara, what’s…” Lena said, but she was interrupted as three men carrying large weapons pushed their way through the crowd.

“Lena, we should run,” Kara told her quickly, pulling at her arm.

“No, Kara, this is my party, I have to…”

“My, my… Look how many pretty things there are,” the leader of the gang said, and Kara was left with no choice. As Lena turned toward the thugs, she hurried away, disappearing around a corner to quickly change into her Supergirl uniform.

“Oh, you picked the wrong party to crash,” she heard Lena tell the thugs.

“I don’t think so, princess,” the leader said, and anger filled Kara as she ripped the zipper in her dress. “Alright, I’m gonna keep this real simple, people! Hand over every ring, pearl, diamond, watch, wallet, and no one gets disintegrated!”

Kara circled above the gala as the thugs began ripping the necklaces from around women’s necks and demanding they remove their other valuables, looking for any weak spots. After a moment she determined that the best path of attack was straightforward, and she dove toward them.

“Did you really think I wouldn’t be here?” she asked.

“Actually, I was countin’ on it,” the leader said, turning around and firing his weapon at her. Kara met it with a blast of heat vision, only to be knocked back by a second weapon.

Kara took to the sky as partygoers fled. Kara aimed for the thugs with their alien weaponry with her heat vision, but she also kept glancing around to look for Lena. The brunette was nowhere to be seen, and Kara could only hope that she had taken her advice and fled the party for a safer location. She also couldn’t find Winn, and that concerned her. She saw James ushering people to safety, and that didn’t surprise her, but when one of the thugs aimed his weapon toward James, Kara gave an extra burst of speed and intercepted the blast, taking it to her own chest. The impact hurt her, but it would’ve killed James.

“Lights out, Supergirl,” the gang leader said, leveling his weapon at her. Kara met it with her heat vision, but then the other two thugs fired their weapons as well. Kara knew she couldn’t hold them off indefinitely, and she wasn’t sure what a combined blast from all three weapons might do to her, even with her Kryptonian invulnerability.

Suddenly a wave of energy swept through the room, and all three alien weapons rose into the air and disintegrated in midair. The thugs looked baffled at this turn of events, but suddenly helpless as L-Corp security rushed forward to secure them. Kara looked around, eyes seeking one person, only to find two faces that she knew. Winn crawled out from under a large banquet table followed by Lena, who was smoothing down her dress. Kara raised a brow curiously, and Winn looked at her with wide eyes.

“Oh, no, we weren’t under there, uh… We stopped it!” he declared with a thumbs up.

“Miss Luthor, you—“ Kara began.

“Have you seen Kara?” Lena demanded. “We got separated when they attacked and I had to start the Black Body Generator and…”

“Wait, you used a Black Body Generator? That’s genius!” Kara exclaimed.

“Supergirl, please, help me find Kara!” Lena demanded frantically.

“Okay, I can do that,” Kara assured her. “Just, um, let me go look around. I’ll find her, we’ll find her, just…”

Kara flew away quickly, back to where she had left her dress. The zipper was ripped slightly but she managed to get it on anyway and prayed that Lena wouldn’t notice. She hurried back to where Lena was still looking around frantically.

“Lena? Lena!” she shouted.

“Oh god, Kara!” Lena exclaimed, rushing toward Kara and throwing her arms around her. “You’re okay!”

“I’m fine,” Kara assured her, relaxing into Lena’s embrace. “I’m fine, I promise.”

“I didn’t know what happened to you,” Lena said, pulling away with tearful eyes. “I thought… I’m so sorry, Kara. I should never have invited you.”

“What? No, it’s fine, you didn’t know this would happen.”

“I did, though,” Lena told her. “I mean, not with one hundred percent certainty, but with this gang’s track record, I knew chances were good. So I made a Black Body Generator that would destroy their weapons if they used them here. That’s where I went when they attacked, and that’s why I wasn’t with you. I put you in harm’s way, Kara, and I’m so sorry.”

“Lena, it’s okay, really,” Kara assured her. “And a Black Body Generator? That’s genius, Lena! Absolutely genius!”

“I just… I wanted you here because you make things bearable,” Lena admitted. “But it was selfish of me.”

“Hey, I’m glad I was here with you,” Kara said, pulling her into another hug. “Everything’s fine, Lena. I’m fine, you’re fine. It’s gonna be okay. But maybe for our next date, fewer bad guys and more spending time together? Maybe something a little more casual too?”

Lena chuckled at that. “You really want to go out with me again?”

“I really do,” Kara replied earnestly.

Lena stared at her for a long moment before nodding. “Alright, I’ll let you plan the next date.”

——

Kara stared down at Lena where she stood on her balcony. She knew she should keep her distance— every time she was around Lena as Supergirl she risked the other woman realizing her secret identity. But something about the forlorn way the CEO was looking out over the city just called to Kara, and she couldn’t help but float over and touch down on the balcony where Lena stood.

“Supergirl,” Lena greeted, her voice bright but tired. “What are you doing here?”

“I just wanted to check in on you, after the party,” Kara said. “You seem a bit shaken.”

Lena looked down at the street below. “You heard what happened to the men that were arrested?”

Kara nodded. Maggie had been upset about it. All three men had some sort of device implanted into their brains, and when they were being escorted to the transport taking them to National City Jail, the device had exploded, causing lethal intracranial bleeding.

“Their deaths weren’t your fault, Miss Luthor,” Kara assured her. “The NCPD think whatever happened to them was caused by whomever they were working for. They’re investigating it now.”

“Oh, I know it’s not my fault,” Lena replied. “But still it’s just… stomach turning. I’m glad they were arrested at least, and that the weapons were destroyed. I hope the authorities can find whoever is ultimately responsible.”

“Well, they have a start, thanks to you,” Kara told her. Lena turned toward her office and gestured for Kara to walk with her. “You took a great risk, Miss Luthor. Why didn’t you tell me what you were up to?”

Lena shrugged lightly. “I doubt you would’ve believed that a Luthor just wanted to see justice done.”

Kara wasn’t so sure about that, but she couldn’t tell Lena. Kara Danvers trusted her, but Supergirl had no real reason to up until this point.

“Well, I couldn’t have stopped them without you,” she said honestly, turning back to the other woman. “Thank you.”

Lena smiled, that wide smile that sent Kara’s insides into a tailspin. “Who would’ve believed it? A Luthor and a Super working together?”

Kara chuckled and smiled broadly. It was a surprise, but definitely a good one. It just made her like Lena that much more.

“I hope we can work together more in the future,” Lena said hopefully.

Kara nodded. “Me too.”

Soft footfalls from behind her drew Kara’s attention, and a voice rang out as she turned around to see who was approaching.

“Oh! I didn’t realize you had company.” Kara didn’t recognize the woman entering Lena’s office. She was older than Lena, tall, attractive, and well-dressed, so Kara knew she certainly belonged to the same social circles as Lena. But she could hear the way Lena swallowed hard at the woman’s presence, could sense how her weight shifted from one foot to the other.

“Would you excuse me, Supergirl? I, I have to take this,” Lena said, voice stilted.

“Of course,” Kara agreed, though everything in her told her that she shouldn’t leave Lena alone with this woman who made her so uncomfortable. She took off from the balcony, but not before she heard the beginning of Lena’s conversation with the woman.

“I’m sorry I missed your party,” the stranger said, not sounding sorry at all.

“What else is new?” Lena said, voice bitter. “So what can I do for you, Mom?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you guys think. Any speculation of how all of this is somehow going to turn into a 101 Dalmatians type story? Or how Lena is going to find out that Kara is Supergirl? Or how she will react? I love seeing speculation in the comments section.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Is fluffy angst a thing?

Kara looked down at her phone for the tenth time in as many minutes. Around her the park was bustling with life— children played on the nearby playground, joggers ran this way and that, people talked and laughed— but Kara was buzzing with nerves. At her feet, Krypto kept glancing up at her, then looking around. He knew their routine, knew that normally they would meet Lena and Keeva here for play dates, but just like Kara he wasn’t sure why his friend was running late.

She hadn’t spoken to Lena in almost a week, not since before the evening she dropped by her office as Supergirl and left Lena speaking with her mother. They had texted a few times after the gala, but nothing much. When Kara texted her to make plans for their next date, Lena didn’t respond. When Kara called to see if Lena was alright, she didn’t answer. When Kara emailed to see if they were still on for their weekly play date with the dogs, still nothing. But still, Kara had gotten up on Saturday morning, put on her casual clothes and Krypto’s leash, and headed to the park. So far, though, Lena wasn’t here either.

Kara knew there could be any number of reasons Lena wasn’t there. There could’ve been an emergency at L-Corp, not just in National City but maybe in one of their other offices anywhere around the world. Or maybe Lena had some sort of family emergency and that was why her mother had come to her office that night. But somehow, Kara doubted all of those. Kara remembered what Lena had said about her family’s attitude toward same-sex relationships, and Lena’s mother had shown up just days after Lena had publicly come out. That couldn’t be a coincidence.

Kara looked down at the texts she had sent, wondering what else she could say.

_Are you okay?_

_Do you want to hang out? It doesn’t have to be a date._

_I’m still here for you, even if you don’t want more._

_Krypto misses you. And Keeva._

_I miss you._

Suddenly Krypto stood and wagged his tail rapidly, hitting Kara’s shin with so much force that she was certain a human would bruise. She looked up from her phone to see a familiar figure striding toward her. Her heart hammered in her chest as she stood, barely holding Krypto back in his excitement. Lena seemed to be having just as much trouble holding Keeva back, and when the two dogs got within reach of each other they yipped excitedly, circling each other and sniffing before Krypto rested his head on Keeva’s back affectionately.

“You’re right, they did miss each other.”

Kara looked up at Lena and tried to read her expression. Lena had a white-knuckled grip on Keeva’s leash, her posture was stiff, and her features were anxious. Her jaw clenched as she looked at Kara, but her eyes were soft, red, as if maybe she had been crying before she came to the park.

“Are you okay?” Kara asked.

Lena shifted nervously from one foot to the other as she bit her lip. “Can we… Could we go somewhere more private to talk?”

“Yeah, of course,” Kara replied. “Follow me.”

She led Lena out of the park and down the street. They walked in silence until they came to the front of Kara’s apartment building and she pulled out her key.

“I hope this is okay,” Kara said, realizing a little too late that Lena might not have meant to go back to her apartment when she said somewhere private.

“You live here?” Lena asked, her voice thick with curiosity but not judgment.

“Mmhmm,” Kara replied. “Would you like to come up?”

“Sure,” Lena agreed with a small smile. She followed Kara to the elevator and they rode up in silence. It didn’t feel as awkward as Kara thought it might, which was a relief. They stepped out and down the hall until they came to Kara’s door. Kara gave Lena a nervous smile as she opened her door and held it for her friend.

“Home sweet home,” she said simply as they stepped inside. “You can hang Keeva’s leash here, if you want, I’ve got the place pretty dog-proof because of Krypto. And I can take your coat, if you want.”

“Thank you,” Lena said, giving Kara her burgundy coat and letting Keeva loose to explore the apartment with Krypto.

“Do you want a drink?” Kara asked, stepping toward the refrigerator.

“Water would be great,” Lena said, following Kara. Once Kara had the waters, Lena stepped over to the refrigerator where pictures were held with magnets. “Is this your sister?”

“Yep, that’s Alex,” Kara replied, opening herdrink.

“You two don’t look alike, but I still never would’ve guessed you’re adopted. You look so close,” Lena noted. She looked at another picture. “And is this…?”

“Maggie, Alex’s girlfriend,” Kara replied.

“So she’s a cop,” Lena said, noting the jacket Maggie was wearing in the photo. “Didn’t you say your sister’s an FBI agent?”

“Yep,” Kara replied.

Lena grinned broadly. “And how do they feel about you hanging out with a Luthor?”

Kara chuckled awkwardly. “Well, they were a little worried at first, I’ll be honest. Alex more than Maggie. But they both trust my judgment. Actually, it was Maggie who suggested I ask you out.”

“Really?”

“Mmhmm, she’s all for kissing the girls we wanna kiss and all that,” Kara grinned.

Lena grinned back. “So you wanna kiss me?”

Kara could feel the blood rush to her cheeks. “Well, uh, I mean… Yeah.”

Lena’s cheeks turned a flattering shade of pink but before Kara could embarrass herself any further Keeva came bounding past the curtain that separated Kara’s living area from her bedroom area with a very loud squeaky toy in her mouth, Krypto hot on her heels. The dogs tussled for a few moments in the open space between Kara’s kitchen and living room before collapsing into a doggy pile, each one chewing on opposite ends of the toy.

“Goobers,” Kara chuckled, looking back toward Lena. The brunette had made her way toward the sofas, still looking at the photos scattered around the apartment. Kara followed her, and saw the photo she was looking at. “That’s Eliza, my adoptive mom. That one was taken at my college graduation.”

“She seems lovely,” Lena commented. “What about her? How does she feel about… us?”

“About you being a Luthor, or about you being a woman?” Kara asked.

“Both?”

Kara gestured to the sofa. “Sit, please.”

They each sat on opposite ends of the sofa, and Kara had to fight the urge to take Lena’s hand in her own. The brunette pulled a pillow into her lap and hugged it with crushing force.

“Eliza didn’t quite know what to make of my sexuality when I came to live with them,” Kara said, choosing her words carefully. “I was twelve and my parents had always been very open, so I already knew I liked boys and girls when I came to live with the Danvers. Both of them were accepting, but I always got the impression that Eliza was worried about me being different, that it would get me into trouble or people would make fun of me. So I hid that part of myself for a long time. I only really started dating girls some when I moved out and went to college. When I came home at Christmas and talked about having a girlfriend, Eliza just kind of did this slow blink and then went on with life like it was nothing out of the ordinary.”

“That sounds… amazing,” Lena sighed wistfully.

“She was great,” Kara said. “But, oddly enough, even though she was so accepting of me liking boys and girls, it still took Alex until she was in her late twenties to figure out she was gay and come out. Eliza always held Alex to impossibly high standards, and I think Alex internalized them so much that she felt like being anything besides normal and perfect would be a disappointment. But then she met Maggie. Even then, when she did come out, Eliza was great about it.”

“I don’t… I don’t think I ever really came out to my parents,” Lena said into the pillow. “Lionel was dead by the time I figured it out. And Lillian, well… She figured it out without me telling her. And she made her disapproval known.”

Lena looked up at Kara. “I owe you an apology. I’m sorry I’ve been ignoring your texts and calls. I just… I had to deal with some personal things. I shouldn’t have shut you out.”

“Do you wanna talk about it?” Kara asked.

“No, not really,” Lena forced out a laugh. “But we probably should.”

“We don’t have to…” Kara began.

“My mother came to my office two days after the gala,” Lena told her. “She… Well, she basically told me that I was a disgrace to the Luthor name and that I was unfit to run L-Corp, that my personal decisions would cause my company to fail. That’s the short version, anyway. Her tirade went on for at least fifteen minutes. I believe there were some religious references thrown in as well, and I’m sure the word abomination was used.”

“Lena, I’m so sorry,” Kara said.

“I wasn’t surprised, really,” Lena continued, as if Kara hadn’t spoken. “When I was thirteen I had my first girlfriend, one of my classmates. Her name was Taylor. Lillian paid her and her family to break up with me, and paid for her to transfer to a different school. A few years later she paid a boy to date me. I didn’t find out about all this until I was eighteen, but when I did she swore that she only did it because she loved me and wanted what was best for me.”

“That’s horrible!”

“She might try to do the same to you,” Lena said, looking up at Kara with wide eyes.

“Well, she can try, but it won’t work,” Kara said firmly.

“You mean… You mean you wouldn’t…?”

“Of course not!” Kara exclaimed. “Lena do you really think I would break up with you for money?”

Lena blushed. “Other people have.”

“Well I’m not other people!” Kara argued. “I really like you, Lena, really _really_ like you and I—“

Kara was fairly certain Lena didn’t have super speed, but her body was almost a blur as she launched herself across the length of Kara’s sofa and pressed her lips to Kara’s. It wasn’t how Kara had ever imagined their first kiss might happen— Lena was tense and Kara was too surprised to really reciprocate— but it was sweet nonetheless. After a moment Lena pulled away, eyes wide and damp.

“I’m sorry,” she said quickly. “I hope I didn’t overstep, I just—“

Kara cut her off by kissing her again. This time was different, softer. Lena melted into Kara as their lips pushed and pulled against each other. Kara didn’t want to push for more, but she also didn’t want to stop.

A heavy sigh pulled their attention away from the kiss, and they parted reluctantly, only to hear a slight whine. They looked over and saw Krypto and Keeva sitting side by side on the opposite side of the coffee table, staring at them with brown and blue eyes. Kara rolled her eyes as Lena burst into giggles.

“Creepers,” Kara grumbled, even as both dogs’ tails began wagging, thumping hard against the hardwood floors.

“At least they didn’t interrupt us with a cold nose,” Lena laughed.

“True,” Kara admitted. She looked at Lena and was completely enamoured. Lena’s cheeks were flushed faintly pink, her lipstick was slightly smeared, and her eyes were so bright green with joy that it made Kara’s chest swell with pride. “So, um, about that date?”

Lena’s eyes widened. “You still want to date me?”

“I thought kissing you might’ve given away my intentions,” Kara deadpanned.

Lena blushed brighter. “Well, yes, I suppose. But I didn’t want to assume.”

“Well, to make it perfectly clear: Yes, I do want to date you, Lena,” Kara said earnestly. “If that’s what you want?”

“Yes,” Lena nodded. “Yes, definitely. I never should’ve ghosted you like I did, Kara, I’m so…”

“No, no more apologies,” Kara told her. “You had to deal with some personal stuff, and that’s okay. You’re allowed to be human and have feelings, Lena. Just, next time, maybe talk to me about it. I like to think I’m a pretty good listener.”

“You are,” Lena agreed. “You… Gosh, I’ve never been able to talk to anyone about this kind of thing, Kara. You’re so easy to talk to, so easy to trust.”

Kara swallowed down the acid that rose in her throat at Lena’s words. Here Lena was trusting her with her feelings, and Kara was lying to her. She opened her mouth to speak, but words wouldn’t come.

Lena’s phone buzzed and she looked down. “Oh, um… I just…”

“No, take it, that’s fine,” Kara said, sitting back a bit to give Lena more space. The other woman fumbled to pull her phone from her pocket and looked at the screen. Immediately her brow furrowed and she bit her lip.

“Oh, crap,” Lena muttered. “Kara, I’m so sorry, but there’s been an issue with a shipment of tech components from Hong Kong. I really need to head into the office and make some contacts. I’m so sorry.”

“No, that’s fine. Duty calls, right?” Kara asked.

“No rest for the wicked,” Lena smirked, standing. “Keeva, come on, let’s go.”

Kara followed them as they headed for the door, reaching down to grab Krypto’s collar. “So, um, I’ll text or call you later?”

“Yes, please,” Lena said as she slipped her arms into her coat. “And I’ll answer this time, I promise.”

“I’ll hold you to that,” Kara said, stepping to hold the door open. As Lena stepped past Kara could smell the faint floral scent of her perfume, and she was tempted to kiss her one last time but reined that urge in.

“Goodbye, Kara,” Lena said, her tone light but with a faint twinge of disappointment.

“Goodbye,” Kara replied, watching as Lena and Keeva walked down the hall and around the corner to the elevator. Lena glanced back over her shoulder as she turned the corner and smiled faintly before disappearing from view.

Kara walked back into the apartment feeling a strange mixture of emotions. On one hand, she was filled with excitement over the possibility of a date with Lena. On the other, she felt overwhelming guilt over not telling her that she was Supergirl yet.

Her eyes travelled to the photo of Alex and Maggie on the fridge. It had been taken right after Alex was kidnapped, held captive, and almost killed by a man who knew Kara’s identity from when they were kids and tried used that knowledge to blackmail her into breaking his father out of prison. It was a constant reminder that the people closest to Kara, especially those who knew that she was Supergirl, were in danger of being used against her. With her last name, Kara knew Lena would be at even greater risk if their association ever came out. Perhaps the safest thing would’ve been for them to never get together, but Kara found herself drawn to Lena like a moth to a flame. She just hoped, in the end, that neither of them would end up burned.

Kara’s phone beeped, and she recognized the tone as the one used for Alex’s DEO phone and official Supergirl business. She looked at Krypto and sighed.

“Duty calls, bud,” she said, ruffling his fur as she grabbed her phone. “Yeah, Alex, whatcha got?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter: their first date
> 
> Also, I don’t think there will be any more real S2 parallels to the story, I just needed a way to set up Lillian and Cadmus


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena under attack

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m getting a lot of writing done during this quarantine guys. I can’t believe it.
> 
> Also, this was supposed to be a 101 Dalmatians AU and I swear we’re gonna get there but somehow it turned into a retelling of S2 and idk what’s happening but here we go.

“Wait a minute, you’re going on a _date_ with _Lena Luthor_?”

Kara sighed as she looked at her cousin across the table. “That’s what I said.”

Clark stared at her with wide eyes. “I— Look, Kara, don’t take this the wrong way but are you sure—“

“Oh my gosh, you and Alex are exactly the same!” Kara groaned.

“That’s because we care about you,” Clark said with a soft smile. “But we also want you to be happy.”

Kara sighed. “I know that. And the thing is, she makes me happy. I think we could be really good together.”

“But she doesn’t know that you’re Supergirl?” Clark asked, his voice low.

Kara shook her head. That was why she had invited Clark to National City for a visit. She wanted his opinion on things, even though she had honestly expected his suspicious reaction to finding out who Kara was dating. It was only natural after what Lex Luthor had done to Superman, but Kara knew that Lena was nothing like her brother and had done her best to convince Clark of that.

Kara wanted to tell Lena her identity, and she wanted to tell her soon. She already trusted the other woman completely, in spite of everyone’s constant reminders of her last name. But there were so many complications to telling Lena who she was. Her biggest fear was that Lena would be angry that she didn’t tell her even sooner, and she would lose the woman she was quickly falling head over heels for. Kara wrestled with the idea in her mind and figured it would only get worse as more time passed, so she decided that she would tell Lena after their date, for sure, no matter what happened.

“Well, it seems like you’ve already got your mind made up,” Clark sighed. “Look, Kara, I obviously don’t know Lena Luthor the way you do. But if she cares about you like you say she does, then she’ll accept this part of you. It may not be easy— when I told Lois, it took her a while to wrap her head around it and forgive me for not telling her sooner— but have faith.”

“Thanks, Clark,” Kara said, and sighed with relief. “I’m dying to tell her, honestly. I’ve been avoiding her for the past few days, both as Kara and as Supergirl, because I was afraid she might put two and two together— she’s really, really smart. But it’s like she has a giant neon target tattooed on her forehead, I swear. Did you know she was supposed to be on that plane we saved from crashing this morning?”

“Seriously?” Clark asked. “Wow, that’s…”

Suddenly Kara’s cell phone rang, the ringtone signaling it was Alex’s DEO phone calling. Kara pulled it from her pocket, brow crinkling as she answered.

“Hey, Alex, what’s up?” she asked.

“Hey, Winn has been looking over the data from the Venture explosion this morning and he may have found something,” her sister said. “Winn, you’re on speaker.”

“Right, so the oscillator that exploded on the Venture, it was housed under the main passenger cabin,” Winn said. “In fact, it was housed under seat twenty-three-B.”

“Okay, how is that relevant?” Kara asked, glancing up at Clark across the table.

“According to the manifest, guess who was supposed to be sitting in seat twenty-three-B?”

“Lena,” Kara breathed, understanding dawning on her face.

“We think Lena was the target of the explosion,” Alex said. “Which means—“

“Somebody’s trying to kill her,” Kara said, fingers digging into the metal of the diner table in front of her. “Clark?”

“I’m with you,” he nodded. “Let’s go.”

They made it to the L-Corp building just in time to see a helicopter taking flight from the roof and two armed drones taking aim. Kara didn’t need to use her x-ray vision to know that Lena was on board the helicopter.

“See, I told you, huge target right on her forehead,” she told Clark as they flew toward the helicopter.

“Well, as long as she’s not bald like Lex,” he said with a grin, just before they flew between the helicopter and the drone to block a barrage of bullets.

Kara was once more grateful that she had invited Clark. Whoever was trying to kill Lena had sent more drones around the city targeting innocent civilians, so while Kara protected the chopper, Clark took care of the civilians. As Kara lowered the damaged helicopter back to the landing pad and ripped the door open, she had to fight the urge to pull a clearly shaken Lena into her arms.

“You’re safe now,” she told her, checking the injured pilot to distract herself.

“What the hell was that?” Lena exclaimed, looking at her with wide green eyes.

Kara sighed. “Someone’s trying to kill you.”

It took every bit of Kara’s strength to stay away from Lena as Alex and the DEO arrived to inspect the scene. They gathered up what remained of the drones and took them back to headquarters for Winn to look over, and all Kara could do was watch as Lena was interviewed and led back inside L-Corp. Later that night, however, as she made her nightly circuit around the city, she couldn’t help but notice that the light was still on in the L-Corp executive suite, and before she could stop herself her boots were touching down on a familiar balcony.

She had, however, forgotten one thing. As she entered the office through the balcony door, Keeva rose up from her bed beside Lena’s desk and let out a warning bark and a low growl. Kara quickly put her hands out to her sides.

“Hey, easy girl,” she said as the dog approached. “I’m just a friend.”

Keeva’s head quirked to the side at the familiar tone of Kara’s voice, and she approached hesitantly, sniffing. Suddenly her tail began to wag furiously and she jumped up on Kara, licking her face before jumping down and looking around. Kara had to bite her lip to keep from telling the dog that Krypto wasn’t with her.

“She doesn’t usually take to strangers well,” Lena said, brow furrowed. Kara noticed she had reached under her desk when she first entered, but now she withdrew her hand and placed it back on the arm of her chair.

“Dogs like me,” Kara said with a shrug. “You’re here late, Miss Luthor.”

Lena sighed. “I don’t think I will sleep much tonight. Not knowing there’s someone out there who wants me dead.”

“We— the organization I work for— we found a partial print on one of the drones,” Kara told her. “Does the name John Corben mean anything to you?”

Lena’s eyes widened and she glanced at Keeva before looking back at Supergirl. “John Corben? Are you sure?”

“Positive,” Kara replied. “You know him?”

“He was Lex’s kennel master,” Lena said incredulously. “Why on Earth would he be trying to kill me?”

“Kennel master?” Kara said. “Well, according to our records, he’s an international assassin for hire. He’s been linked to Intergang, Kasnian terrorists, and the genocide in Corte Maltese. But he did work with military canines at the beginning of his career, so there’s that.”

“He was there the day I got Keeva,” Lena said, calling the dog to her and stroking her head. “I asked him to help find new homes for Lex’s dogs, I gave him a fair severance. And now he’s…”

“He worked for your brother?” Kara asked.

Lena nodded. “Guess that answers the question of who’s trying to kill me, doesn’t it?”

“I mean, we don’t know for sure,” Kara said.

“Even in prison, Lex has plenty of power to pull strings,” Lena told her. “He probably sees everything I’m doing with L-Corp as a betrayal. I suppose that means I’m doing things right.”

“Maybe… Maybe you should lay low for a bit, at least until we catch Corben,” Kara suggested. “I know… I mean… I was talking to Kara Danvers the other day and she mentioned you two were going on a date. Maybe you should cancel…”

Lena looked up at her with narrowed eyes. “You were talking to Kara Danvers, you say?”

Kara swallowed hard, turning away slightly. “Yeah, you know, just talking the way friends do… More like acquaintances, really. Just, um… chatting.”

“Right,” Lena said. “Maybe you’re right. I don’t want to put her in danger again.” Lena sighed. “Of course, with that rationale, I should probably break it off with her entirely.”

“What?” Kara exclaimed. “No! Wha— Why would you think that?”

“I’m a Luthor,” Lena said with a shrug. “My life is going to be in constant danger because of my last name. Anyone that I become involved with is going to be threatened, you of all people must understand that.”

Kara’s brow crinkled again. “Yes, I understand that. But… But I think that’s a decision you should let Kara make for herself, don’t you?”

Lena sighed. “Of course. You’re right, I should let her make that decision. Which is all the more reason I should go out with her tomorrow night, we can talk about all this together then.”

“I— Yes, that sounds reasonable,” Kara agreed. Suddenly a siren sounded in the distance and she looked up. “I should go get that.”

“Of course,” Lena replied. “And thank you, Supergirl, for your advice and for saving me today.”

“Anytime,” Kara replied, stepping toward the balcony. “I mean, I hope I don’t have to again, but if I do, well… anytime.”

Lena’s brows furrowed and Kara hastily made her way toward the balcony and out the door, for once thankful for the four-alarm fire allowing her to escape from what had to be one of the most awkward conversations of her life.

——

Lena stared at her reflection in the mirror of her hotel suite, assessing her outfit— the third one she had tried on in the last hour. Kara had told her to wear something casual, but Lena had never been entirely sure what that meant. Jess had clarified a bit for her over lunch— “JEANS, Lena, normal people wear jeans when they want to be casual. And for the love of God, don’t wear heels!”— and that had limited her choices, but she was still contemplating her options.

Behind her, Keeva let out a deep sigh. She laid on one half of the king-sized bed, beside a heap of discarded sweaters and blouses. When Lena turned toward her, Keeva looked up at her with big brown eyes and wagged her tail happily.

“You like this one?”Lena asked, smoothing down the front of her shirt. She had chosen a simple white chiffon tank under a black leather jacket. Her hair was down— she could read Kara’s face well enough to know that she liked it when Lena wore her hair down. She was wearing jeans and flat black suede ankle boots that she absolutely adored. Lena checked her reflection once more, making sure the simple makeup was still intact, before nodding. “I think this is the one. You ready to go?”

Keeva gave a little yip as she hopped off the bed and ran to the door. Lena grabbed her purse and clipped Keeva’s leash to her collar before heading out. She had agreed to meet Kara at her apartment so they could leave the dogs there while they headed to their date. Once her driver dropped her off, Lena did an extra walk down the block so Keeva could relieve herself before heading into Kara’s building.

Lena had just raised her hand to knock when Kara pulled the door open. Lena stood frozen for a moment, hand stupidly suspended, as she took in the blonde’s features. Kara’s hair was loose around her shoulders, barely pinned back out of her face. She wore a blue blouse that made the bright blue of her eyes pop even more than normal, and tight black jeans that hugged her curves.

“Lena! Hi!” Kara said cheerfully, pulling her in for a tight hug and a quick kiss on the cheek. “How are you?”

“I’m fine,” Lena said, gathering her wits. “I’m fine, I swear, and no more attempts on my life since we talked earlier today, I swear.”

“Well, that’s definitely a relief,” Kara said with a dramatic sigh. Suddenly she was almost knocked off her feet as an overly-excited Krypto came bounding through the apartment headed for Keeva. “Hey, you big goober, watch where you’re going!”

Krypto paid her no mind as he busily began sniffing at Keeva. Lena removed her collar and released her into the apartment. “Are you sure they’re good to stay here?”

“Oh, yeah, they’ll be fine,” Kara assured her as she reached for her jacket. “Are you ready to go?”

“Actually, before we go, I wanted to talk to you about something,” Lena said, placing a hand on Kara’s arm.

“Okay,” Kara replied nervously. “What, um, what do you want to talk about?”

Lena took a deep breath. “Well… I was talking to Supergirl, actually—“

“Oh, you were,” Kara said, adjusting her glasses.

“Yes, just talking, you know, with everything going on,” Lena took a breath again. “The thing is, Kara, I’m a Luthor.”

Kara raised her brows. “I’m aware of that, Lena.”

“Yes, I know, but I’m not sure you understand what that means exactly,” Lena sighed. “Kara, one of the first lessons Lionel ever taught me was what to do if someone tried to kidnap me. Where to bite or poke or hit until they let me go. I’ve had a security detail most of my life, making sure I was safe from everything from robbery to kidnapping to assassination attempts. And with my brother in prison, there’s always going to be a target on my forehead.”

“Yeah, I’ve actually thought that myself,” Kara murmured in agreement.

“People are always going to be trying to hurt me,” Lena said, her voice low. “And they won’t care if they hurt someone I care about in the process. In fact, some of them would be happy to hurt you as a way to get to me. And Kara… Kara, it would kill me if you were hurt because you’re connected… because you’re _dating_ me.”

Kara looked at her with a sad expression. “So is this you breaking up with me before we ever go on a second date?”

“No,” Lena sighed. “No, Supergirl actually talked me out of that. She said I should leave it up to you, whether or not you’re comfortable putting yourself in danger just to be with me.”

“She’s a smart cookie, that Supergirl,” Kara said with a forced laugh. “But seriously, Lena, I already kind of knew all that. Not the part about Lionel teaching you how to fight off kidnappers, obviously, but the other stuff. And I’m not really worried about being hurt because I’m around you.”

“Well, you should be,” Lena huffed.

“I do understand it, I really do,” Kara told her, and Lena opened her mouth to argue but Kara continued without giving her a chance. “But the thing is… If we’re constantly afraid that someone might hurt the people we love because of who we are, then we’re going to be alone forever. We’re going to miss out on a chance at happiness together. And I, for one, am not willing to let fear keep me from being happy with you.”

Lena wasn’t sure what it was— the fierceness in Kara’s voice, the sparkle in her blue eyes, or simply the earnest words she uttered. But whatever it was it sparked a fire in her chest so bright that she couldn’t contain it. She launched herself at the other woman and pressed her lips haphazardly against Kara’s. Kara let out a muffled squeak of surprise but made no protest, instead wrapping her arms around Lena’s midriff to hold her stead, her firm touch stating clearer than words _I’m here, and I’m not going anywhere._

When they finally came up for air, Lena looked up at Kara with a slight blush and a bright smile. The blonde bit her lip and looked down at Lena fondly.

“As much as I would love to continue this,” Kara said with a slight squeeze to Lena’s hips, “I really want to take you on a date. So… later?”

Lena nodded. “Definitely.”

Kara grabbed her jacket and Lena’s hand and they headed back downstairs. Only once they were on the sidewalk and Kara started putting on her jacket did Lena realize that it was a black leather jacket similar to her own.

“So which car is yours?” Lena asked, looking around.

“Well, it’s not exactly a car and it’s not exactly mine,” Kara chuckled, walking toward a motorcycle parked just a little ways up the block. “Alex let me borrow the Ducati for the night. I hope you don’t mind.”

Lena had to force herself to pick her jaw up off the sidewalk as Kara pulled two helmets from the bike’s saddlebags.

“You ride?” she asked, and she knew she had failed to keep the quiver out of her voice when Kara turned to her with a crinkled brow.

“Yeah,” she replied. “But if you’re scared we can always Uber, I don’t mind.”

Lena chuckled and stepped forward boldly. “Kara, I’m not afraid. In fact I’m a little… turned on by the thought of you riding a motorcycle.”

This time it was Kara’s cheeks that blushed a flattering shade of pink. She smoothed Lena’s hair down before carefully placing the helmet on her head and strapping it tightly into place. Then she put on her own helmet and sat astride the motorcycle before gesturing for Lena to get on behind her. Lena took her place behind Kara, slotting her legs close behind Kara’s and wrapping her arms around her midriff until she could feel the slight flex of Kara’s abs beneath her fingers.

“So where are we going?” Lena asked as Kara started the bike and revved it up.

“You’ll see,” Kara told her cockily. “Hold on tight.”

Lena did just that and squealed with excitement as they pulled out of the parking space and sped off into the evening.

**Author's Note:**

> As usual, I live for comments, even if it’s something random.
> 
> Also, you can check out my tumblr if you want updates @emiliarowan


End file.
